NATO

Previously, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the Biden administration is concerned the Kremlin is preparing for "widespread human rights violations."

A State Department spokesperson told Newsweek that "the coming days" will prove if diplomacy can succeed, while Russia's envoy warned his country was on the "edge of the precipice."

"Finland does not discuss with NATO joining it, nor does Finland have such a project upcoming," Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said.

A week of high-level talks between Moscow and the West have not produced a breakthrough to ease tensions over the Russian troop build-up next to Ukraine.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the Speaker of Russia's lower house, has accused Washington of "destroying the system of ensuring international security."

Russian President Vladimir Putin is demanding that NATO halt any plans to add Ukraine or other nations.

While there are still several rounds of talks, there is little progress for any resolution on either side.

The countries began discussions to address the Russian build-up of troops along the Ukrainian border.

Russia's U.S. ambassador said Kazakhstan's turmoil is rooted in destabilizing U.S. military intervention across Western and Central Asia.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters on Friday that they will not abide by the Russian president's demands.

Russia's president is undertaking a colossal gamble.

"If you want to talk about security in Europe, the Europeans have to be part of the table," said European Union Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell.

The White House said: "President Biden made clear that the United States and its allies and partners will respond decisively if Russia further invades Ukraine."

"I fear that Putin is very likely to invade," Schiff said. "I think nothing other than a level of sanctions that Russia has never seen will deter him."

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told RIA Novosti that the West must stop its "aggressive line."

"On the morning of that day, I had no inkling that by late afternoon I would be leaving," Ghani said during with an interview with the BBC.

The two are scheduled to speak Thursday in a call requested by Russia, which the White House sees as a chance to address the "moment of crisis" in Ukraine.

Washington and Europe don't want to be in a position where their troops are facing off against a nuclear-armed Russia, something Ukraine's incorporation into NATO would enable practically overnight.

The two nations have held similar joint military drills as recently as September, which involved some 200,000 troops and hundreds of military vehicles.

The USS Harry S. Truman and five other ships were ordered to stay in the Mediterranean amid continuing concerns over the situation between Russia and Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed the talks in an interview on Monday, which come after thousands of troops left the Russian-Ukrainian border.

In recent months, Russia has deployed tens of thousands of troops along Ukraine's borders, sparking fears that the nation is gearing up for an invasion.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the West of "pulling" Ukraine into NATO, as tens of thousands of Russian troops sit along Kyiv's borders.

Further military action against Kyiv would have "massive consequences," according to a joint statement issued by the U.S. and 24 other nations.

Russian officials and allies are framing Moscow's deployment of troops to the Ukraine border as a necessary defensive measure.

Negotiations will focus on demands made by both sides recently, as Russia wants the U.S. and its NATO allies to refuse Ukraine's entry into the organization.

"The situation kept worsening and worsening, deteriorating and deteriorating," the Russian president said during a Defense Ministry Board meeting on Tuesday.

"All options" are being considered in Moscow, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said on Tuesday.

Ukraine has made similar requests of its allies recently as U.S. intelligence says around 70,000 Russian troops are near the country's border with Ukraine.

The Kremlin submitted security pact drafts on Friday that also state Russia's army would abide by the same rules.