CNN
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Russia’s invasion of its neighbor in Ukraine is the largest conventional military assault that’s been seen since World War II, a senior US protection official mentioned Thursday outlining US observations of the unfolding conflict.
“We haven’t seen a conventional move like this, nation-state to nation-state, since World War II, certainly nothing on this size and scope and scale,” the official informed reporters Thursday. “And if it unfolds the way that hereto we have come to believe that it will, it has every potential to be very bloody, very costly and very impactful on European security writ large, perhaps for a long, long time to come.”
The US had been issuing stark warnings for weeks that Russian President Vladimir Putin would launch an assault on Ukraine on a scale not seen in a long time. The US and its European allies are set to unveil sanctions on Russia Thursday in response to Moscow’s aggression, although US President Joe Biden has made clear US troops deploying to NATO counties in japanese Europe is not going to be drawn into the conflict in Ukraine, which is not a member of NATO.
Russia’s preliminary assault included “three main axes of assault,” in keeping with the protection official. The preliminary assault included greater than 100 Russian-launched missiles, together with short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, surface-to-air missiles and sea-launched missiles from the Black Sea.
There have been 75 fixed-wing heavy and medium bombers that have been additionally half of the preliminary assault, the official mentioned, and Russia started “some ground incursions” into Ukraine from Belarus, which borders Ukraine to the north. Russian troops had been stationed in Belarus for what Moscow claimed have been military workouts.
So far, the Russian military has focused military and air protection targets in Ukraine, together with barracks, ammunition warehouses and almost 10 airfields, the official mentioned.
“We do not have a good sense of total damage, as you might expect. We do not have a good sense of casualties, civilian and/or military,” the official added.
The US plans to proceed its latest sample of selectively revealing Putin’s plans as they be taught them, officers mentioned Thursday, though it’s now clear the technique couldn’t forestall an invasion of Ukraine.
Officials say they anticipate to proceed utilizing the tactic of releasing intelligence, not essentially to discourage Putin – which hasn’t proved profitable – however to counter Russian claims about occasions on the floor. That may embrace rebutting Russian claims about atrocities or in search of to show some of Putin’s plans forward of time.
More US military belongings will arrive in Eastern European nations later Thursday, the senior protection official mentioned.
Six F-35s will arrive in Estonia, Lithuania and Romania, two to every nation, in keeping with the official. A gaggle of assault helicopters “are on their way,” the official mentioned, whereas noting there’s been “some weather issues” to get them to their places. “We still expect those Apaches to get on site later today,” the official mentioned.
On Tuesday, Biden introduced extra US military belongings can be deployed to NATO allies in Eastern Europe.
That announcement included the motion of as much as eight F-35 strike fighters from Germany to different Eastern European nations alongside NATO’s japanese flank, 20 AH-64 helicopters from Germany to the Baltic area, and 12 AH-64 helicopters moved from Greece to Poland, a senior protection official mentioned Tuesday.
Biden and US officers have mentioned repeatedly that US troops aren’t going into Ukraine, however they’re being deployed to bolster NATO’s japanese flank.
“US troops remain outside of Ukraine,” the official added..