The US government has ordered the families of US diplomats in Kyiv to leave the country “due to the continued threat of a Russian military operation”. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced this on Sunday. Unfortunately, the European Union is not following suit.
The US and other Western countries fear that Russia is planning an invasion of Ukraine, though they are still in the dark about the scope of the possible operation. The fact that Ukraine can count on Western support is apparent, among other things, from the fact that the US has sent military aid material to the country.
US personnel can leave the embassy if they wish, and US citizens residing in Ukraine “should urgently consider” leaving the country on a commercial flight or other means of transport, the US government said in a statement.
The European Union sees no reason to dramatize tensions between Ukraine and Russia and intends to follow the United States in bringing back diplomats’ families. The head of European diplomacy announced this on Monday.
“I think we should not dramatize the situation, and we should not leave Ukraine unless the US provides us with information that would justify such a decision,” Josep Borrell said before a video link meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“We believe there could be a Russian invasion at any time,” a senior US official said Sunday, explaining the recall of the families of US diplomats.
“Blinken will explain this decision to us,” said Borrell on Monday. The US Secretary of State will explain Friday’s talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, during an EU meeting of foreign ministers via video link on Monday.
