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Is it just exercises - or does Russia actually want to invade Ukraine?
The question has been floating around for weeks.
Moscow is stationing thousands of soldiers in the border area and is bringing a lot of military equipment to the region.
Russian battle tanks and artillery pieces are ready in the immediate vicinity of Ukraine.
A look at the map shows why the West fears a Russian invasion of Ukraine.
An estimated 100,000 Russian soldiers are now stationed near Ukraine: to the north, on the border with neighboring Belarus and in some cases only 50 kilometers from the Ukrainian-Russian border.
Troops have also been moving in Crimea, which was annexed by Russia, for months.
This is indicated by analyzes by the US company Rochan Consulting.
Most recently, Moscow sent two S-400 missile defense systems to Belarus, as these photos from the Russian Ministry of Defense show.
The Belarusian government announced joint military exercises between its own troops and Russian units.
The US fears that Russia could attack Ukraine not only from the east, but also from the north.
Moscow categorically rejects a planned invasion of Ukraine.
At the same time, the Kremlin is demanding the withdrawal of NATO troops from Romania and Bulgaria as part of security guarantees.
Russia is determined to prevent further eastward expansion of NATO.
This, in turn, is rejected by several representatives of the security alliance.
The West is reacting to the Russian muscle flexing: The USA and the Europeans are threatening Moscow with massive consequences in the event of an attack on Ukraine.
Britain has deployed armor-piercing defense systems to the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, and is reportedly considering sending hundreds more troops to the Baltics and Poland.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has repeatedly called for a peaceful solution in recent days.
Even if talks between the USA and Russia are still taking place, nobody currently expects the crisis to ease any time soon.
Before another meeting on Friday in Geneva, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia was not afraid of "anyone, including the United States."
