Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters). – If diplomacy fails its goals, the United States is worried that Russia will soon invade Ukraine.

This week, talks ended without a resolution between Russia and the United States.

Tensions were further heightened by a cyberattack against Ukraine. The spokesperson from the White House National Security Council stated that although it wasn’t clear who launched the attack, President Joe Biden was briefed about it.

“We have been in touch with Ukraine, and we offer our support to Ukraine as it investigates the impacts and nature of these incidents and makes a decision on how best to recover from them.” We don’t have an attribution at this time,” the spokesperson said.

Biden warns of dire economic consequences for Russia should Russian President Vladimir Putin launch an invasion in Ukraine. Russia says it does not intend to attack Ukraine.

However, the U.S. official speaking under anonymity said that Russia is “preparing to invade Ukraine” and could cause widespread human rights violations as well as war crimes, should diplomacy fail in their pursuits.

Putin demanded NATO cease its eastward expansion, and that it agree to legal binding security guarantees. This demand was rejected by NATO and the United States.

The official stated that Russia had begun to prepare for invasion. This includes sabotage operations and information operations. Russia also accuses Ukraine of plotting an attack against Russian forces.

According to the official, Russia’s military plans to start these activities “a few weeks before a major military invasion that could occur between mid-January or mid-February.”

According to the official, there is information from America that suggests Russia may have already set up a team of operatives for “a fake-flag operation” against eastern Ukraine.

“The operatives are trained in urban warfare and in using explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy-forces,” the official said.

A Russian official stated that they are aware of indications suggesting that Russian influence agents are starting to create provocations from Ukraine via state and social media in order to justify a Russian intervention. This would help to cause divisions in Ukraine.

According to the official, “For instance, Russian officials are emphasizing narratives concerning the degrading of Ukrainian human rights and increased militancy by Ukrainian leaders.”