Gen. Milley: Kyiv Could Fall within 72 Hours If Russia Invades Ukraine
Invasion could lead to 15,000 Ukrainian troop deaths and 4,000 Russian troop deaths
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Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley has warned of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine could now take place leading to the fall of Kyiv within 72 hours.
During a closed-door briefing on Feb. 2 and 3, Milley told lawmakers a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine could result in the fall of Kyiv within 72-hours.
He added that the invasion could lead to 15,000 Ukrainian troop deaths and 4,000 Russian troop deaths
Several lawmakers expressed concern that the Biden administration did not respond quickly to provide Ukraine with significant military aid, including anti-aircraft and rocket launcher systems.
As Fox News reported:
Biden administration officials at the meetings responded to these concerns by saying that a significant supply of military aid to Ukraine could be used as a reason to invade Ukraine.
While Ukraine is receiving security assistance from the United States through a $200 million allocation made in December, it is also receiving $600 million in assistance from the United Kingdom and Baltic states, which the country is depending heavily upon and includes anti-tank Javelin missiles and older-version Stinger portable anti-aircraft missiles.
Several Biden administration officials were present at the briefings, including Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo, Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves, and USAID Deputy Administrator Ambassador Isobel Coleman.
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The United States is also working to make preparations for a significant refugee and migrant crisis, one person familiar with the planning said. European allies are also leading discussions on housing and migrant flows under the assumption that Ukrainian nationals would flee to other portions of Europe.
Last week, Biden reportedly told Ukraine to “prepare for impact” during a call with President Volodymyr Zelensky as a Russian invasion of the country now seems imminent.
As Neon Nettle reported:
A senior Ukrainian government official reportedly told CNN national security correspondent Alexander Marquardt that the phone call between the two leaders did not go well.
Marquardt tweeted that Biden told Zelensky that a major invasion by Russia is now all but certain.
"Kyiv could be ‘sacked,’ Russian forces may attempt to occupy it, ‘prepare for impact, Biden said, according to this official,” Marquardt tweeted.
The Biden administration has 8,500 troops ready to be sent to NATO allies in Europe, the Post reported.
Russia indicated on Thursday that it would not short-circuit diplomacy, according to The New York Times.
Dmitri Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said there was “not much cause for optimism” that NATO and the U.S. would agree to Putin’s demands to essentially back off Eastern Europe.
