Published on: 1/27/2022IST

Sijo K Jose Last updated on: 22/4/2022, Permalink

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While US officials say there is ‘every indication’ Russian President Vladimir Putin is preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine, some say that an invasion may not take place until after the Winter Olympics.

Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said on Wednesday that Putin’s planning may be affected by the Winter Games in Beijing, which the US and some of its allies are boycotting due to human rights concerns.

According to Sherman, Russia may wait to launch an attack as to not upset China.

‘We are all aware that the Beijing Olympics begin on February 4, the opening ceremony, and President Putin expects to be there,’ Sherman said during the Yalta European Strategy forum.

‘I think that probably President Xi Jinping would not be ecstatic if Putin chose that moment to invade Ukraine, so that may affect his timing and thinking,’ Sherman added.

Tensions remain high between Ukraine and Russia, as over 100,000 Russian troops have gathered along the Belarus border with Ukraine, sparking fear in Western nations of an impending invasion.

‘I have no idea whether he’s made the ultimate decision, but we certainly see every indication that he is going to use military force sometime perhaps [between] now and the middle of February,’ Sherman said.

On Monday, the US military put 8,500 troops on ‘heightened alert’ for potential deployment to Eastern Europe, in a move to ensure the US is ready to respond if NATO decides to send out its response force.

President Joe Biden says while troops are preparing for a possible invasion, no US forces would be placed in Ukraine, which is not a NATO country. Biden on Tuesday emphasized the consequences of a potential invasion on both Russia and the rest of the world.

If Russia sends its troops into Ukraine, it would be the largest invasion since World War II, President Biden said — adding that such a move ‘would change the world.’

‘There will be enormous consequences if he were to go in and invade, as he could, the entire country — or a lot less than as well — for Russia, not only in terms of economic consequences and political consequences,’ Biden said.

The President also said he would consider imposing sanctions on Putin if he were to invade Ukraine.