Tensions continue to peak between Russia and Ukraine in the recent past. Situations continue to take a grimmer turn between the two nations despite repetitive warnings from the Western powers asking Moscow to ease off against Ukraine. While Russia denies the claims of imminent attacks against Ukraine and unequivocally discredits the global sentiment that Ukraine’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity” is in danger, the on-ground act of intensifying the troop build along the borders portrays a contradictory picture. Thus, the misrepresentation of Russia’s testimonies on the ground has sparked fears of a probable attack that could eventually transcend into World War 3. The Defense Minister of Ukraine has further signified the fear saying that the Russian military could seize any city of Ukraine and the situation along the European borders is pretty dire.
According to the U.S. intelligence reports and Ukraine Defense Ministry assessment, Russia has amassed over 130,000 troops, 21,000 air, and sea troops along the eastern Ukraine border. The amassment does not seem to slow down any time soon and therefore the threats are considerably increased. The U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken has further retorted that a military invasion of Kyiv (capital of Ukraine) is on the cards. The New Zealand government, witnessing the volatile security situation in Ukraine, has urged its citizens to leave Ukraine immediately. The advisory warnings shortly after the United States asked its nationals to flee the territory. Britain has also urged its first nationals to move out from Ukraine. India also issued advisory warnings to Indian students asking them to temporarily leave Ukraine
Now that the situation between the two countries can soon turn into hostile rhetorics, the rest of the world is busy assessing the fore-coming consequences. The western nations, which seem to be extra cautious for preventing collateral damage, have discussed the combative and warlike discussions with their Russian counterparts. However, there seems to be no room for a resolution to quell the crisis. The U.S. and its European Allies that are playing a rather subtle role in encouraging the scope of mediation and negotiation between the two nations have only amped up its warnings of stringent economic sanctions against Russia rather than mulling over plausible strategies to de-escalate the standoff. President Joe Biden on an hour-long phone call with Vladimir Putin stringently warned the Kremlin Head of imposing severe costs on Russia if the situation turns chaotic and increasingly hostile.
However, the Russian presence in the territories of Ukraine may appear to be posing a threat to its national security, the London-based think tank seem to believe that the war between the two countries is still off-shores and that Moscow knows its ‘red lines’ and intends to abide by the same. Furthermore, while the umbrella spreads over the bigger threat of World War 3, Ukraine and Russia – backed rebels have sporadically emerged and have engaged in conflicts since 2014. As per the United Nations statistics, there have been more than 3000 civilian deaths in such clashes since then.