US intelligence discovers Russia is planning invasion of Ukraine

As early as the beginning of 2022, Russia could launch a military offensive deploying 175,000 troops

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World News

December 4, 2021 - 8:10 AM

Russia President Vladimir Putin, left, and President Joe Biden meet for talks in Geneva, Switzerland on June 16, 2021. (Mikhail Metzel/TASS/Zuma Press/TNS)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has pledged to make it “very, very difficult” for Russia’s Vladimir Putin to take military action in Ukraine as U.S. intelligence officials determined that Russian planning is underway for a possible military offensive that could begin as soon as early 2022.

The new intelligence finding estimates that the Russians are planning to deploy an estimated 175,000 troops and almost half of them are already deployed along various points near Ukraine’s border, according to a Biden administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the finding.

It comes as Russia has picked up its demands on Biden to guarantee that Ukraine will not be allowed to join the NATO alliance.

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