WASHINGTON – The Pentagon’s top officials warned Friday that a Russian invasion of Ukraine would result in a “horrific” aftermath.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman U.S. Army General Mark Milley and Defense secretary Lloyd Austin described the dire scenario, as NATO and the U.S. prepare for a possible Moscow attack against its ex-Soviet neighbour.

The type of forces arrayed: the ground maneuver force, artillery and ballistic missiles are all combined. Milley explained that this would cause significant damage to Ukraine and result in significant casualties.

Milley, the highest ranking military officer in the country, said that it would be “terrible”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin listened to the U.S. diplomat and security proposal hand delivered by John Sullivan. Russia was initially offered a chilly responseThese are the suggestions.

“So, we will wait what the Russian Government’s response and assessment are to our written replies,” Sullivan stated Friday at the U.S. Embassy. The Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that he expected there to be some discussion, or even a meeting. “But I am not sure that this has been done.”

Milley claimed that Russia’s attitude towards Ukraine’s border is unlike any he had seen in the four decades of his military service. According to Milley, the Russians deployed military and naval units, air and cyber-electronic warfare forces along Ukraine’s border.

Milley stated that “you’d need to look back quite some time into Cold War times to see something like this,” and added that more than 100,000 Russian soldiers were deployed to the border, which was “more than anything we have seen in recent memories.”

Austin urged Moscow to reduce tensions and remove Russian military personnel from the border.

Conflict is possible, but not always. Austin said that diplomacy still has time and space.

“He [Putin]You can de-escalate. He has the ability to send his troops home. He has the option of choosing diplomacy or dialogue. The United States is ready to stand alongside our partners and allies, regardless of what he chooses.

The West has been watching the steady increase in Kremlin troops along Ukraine’s borders with Russia and Belarus for months. This increased military presence mirrors Russian actions ahead of the 2014 illegal annexation by Crimea (a peninsula in the Black Sea), which caused international outrage and led to a number of sanctions being imposed on Moscow.

However, the Kremlin denies that troop deployments are a precursor to attacks and instead describes the move as a military exercise.

Russian officials called the U.S. repeatedly to stop an expansion of NATO’s military alliance eastward.

Russia has also demanded that the U.S. “shall not establish military bases” in the territories of any former Soviet states that are not already members of NATO, or “use their infrastructure for any military activities or develop bilateral military cooperation with them.”

NATO and the U.S. both said they could not accommodate this request.

Kyiv applied for NATO membership in 2002, which is the most powerful military alliance on earth.

Although President Joe Biden is not yet committed to U.S. combat forces in Ukraine, American forces may be deployed to NATO members. Ukraine shares a border between Russia and Belarus. It is also surrounded by four NATO members.

Milley declared, invoking the NATO treaty, that “We’re ready, capable, prepared to fulfill our obligations.” the group’s Article 5 clauseAn attack on one NATO ally can be an attack on all NATO.

Biden said earlier in the week to reporters that a Russian invasion of Ukraine on a large scale would be a major threat to European security. It would be the biggest invasion since World War II if he moved in together with all of those forces. That would make the world a better place.” Biden said.

Biden spoke to Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Ukraine President) on Thursday the second call this monthWashington will reaffirm its commitment to act swiftly if Russia invades Ukraine again. 

The president also told ZelenskyyThe U.S. Embassy is open and functional in Kyiv despite the State Department’s decision to make it eligible family members of personnel at its embassy in Kyiv to leave.

Also, on Sunday, The State Department encouraged all Americans living in Ukraine to leave the country. It cited Russia’s continuing military buildup along the border.