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2 mins ago
New information suggests Russia is prepared to launch an attack before the Olympics are over, sources say.
By Natasha Bertrand, Katie Bo Lillis, Kylie Atwood, Jim Sciutto
The United States and its allies have new intelligence suggesting that Russia could launch an attack on Ukraine even before the end of the Olympics, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
Previous assessments had suggested Russia was unlikely to move into Ukraine until after the Olympics end on February 20, US officials previously told CNN.
The disclosure of the new intelligence comes as government officials have dramatically increased the urgency of their Ukraine-related public warnings in the past 24 hours.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that a Russian invasion of Ukraine "could start at any time," including during the Beijing Winter Olympics, and the United States continues to "see very worrying signs of escalation." including new forces arriving at the Ukrainian border.
Kyiv is among the targets identified in Russian planning, three sources familiar with the new intelligence told CNN.
10 mins ago
Biden and Putin will speak on Saturday as tensions rise over the Russian threat to Ukraine
By Maegan Vazquez
US President Joe Biden will speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday as growing concerns about a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine grip Western governments.
The conversation will take place at 11 am (Miami time and 7 pm Moscow time), according to the Kremlin.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia's state news agency TASS that the talk was initiated by Washington and "the request was preceded by a written request from the American side."
Putin will also speak with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.
The White House confirmed the call Friday night and offered an unusual little detail: A White House official said the Kremlin proposed to place the call on Monday, but the White House instead offered a call on Saturday, which was accepted. .
Prior to these talks, the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Western countries and the press of spreading a "large-scale disinformation campaign" about an alleged imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine "in order to divert attention from their own aggressive actions." .
"In late 2021 and early 2022, the global information space faced a media campaign unprecedented in its scale and sophistication, the goal of which is to convince the world community that the Russian Federation is preparing an invasion of the territory of Ukraine, he said. the Ministry in a statement published on its website.
Putin and Biden last spoke on the phone late last year.
Prior to that, on December 7, they had negotiations by videoconference.
The first face-to-face meeting between Putin and Biden as heads of state took place in Geneva in June 2021.
Russia's president has also engaged a number of Western leaders in talks that so far appear unsuccessful in defusing the situation.
NATORussiaUkraine