A leading member of the White House National Security Council said on Feb. 22 that its interpretation of Russia’s latest military movements are that these are the first steps of a Russian invasion.
Speaking on CNN, Deputy National Security Advisor Jonathan Finer affirmed that the words and actions of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, in recognizing the two territories of Ukraine that Russia tore from Ukraine in 2014 as independent and sovereign republics and sending Russian troops there are evidence of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“Yes, this is the beginning of the latest invasion,“
said Finer, emphasizing that Russia troops have resided in the two breakaway republics since 2014.
Finer agreed, when pressed by CNN correspondents on whether his words meant that the White House would react with severe sanctions as US President Joe Biden has repeatedly stated.
“This will be a severe response, including sanctions that we will roll out in the next few hours,” Finer said
Germany and the US have already announced that the Russian natural gas pipeline project was being shut down. The UK has declared that it has placed sanctions on five Russian banks, banning financial transactions with UK banks.
