Top Biden aide says Ukraine invasion could come ‘any day’

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday that Russia could invade Ukraine “any day”, launching a conflict that would come at an “enormous human cost”.

The senior adviser to President Joe Biden offered another stark warning the day after US officials confirmed that Russia has assembled at least 70 per cent of the military firepower it likely intends to have in place by mid-month to give President Vladimir Putin the option of launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“If war breaks out, it will come at an enormous human cost to Ukraine, but we believe that based on our preparations and our response, it will come at a strategic cost to Russia as well,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan did not directly address reports that the White House has briefed lawmakers that a full Russian invasion could lead to the quick capture of Kyiv and potentially result in as many as 50,000 casualties as he made appearances on a trio of Sunday talk shows.

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US officials, who discussed internal assessments of the Russian buildup on the condition that they not be identified, sketched out a series of indicators suggesting that Putin intends to start an invasion in the coming weeks, although the size and scale are unclear. They stressed that a diplomatic solution appears to remain possible.

Among those military indicators: An exercise of Russia’s strategic nuclear forces that usually is held each fall was rescheduled for mid-February to March. That coincides with what US officials see as the most likely window for invasion.

The administration has stepped up warnings in recent days that Russia increasingly seems intent on further invading Ukrainian territory.

Last week, Biden administration officials said that intelligence findings showed that the Kremlin had worked up an elaborate plot to fabricate an attack by Ukrainian forces that Russia could use as a pretext to take military action against its neighbour.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday that the scheme included production of a graphic propaganda video that would show staged explosions and use corpses and actors depicting grieving mourners.

“It could happen as soon as tomorrow or it could take some weeks yet,” Sullivan said. He added that Putin “has put himself in a position with military deployments to be able to act aggressively against Ukraine at any time now”.

Still, Sullivan said that the administration held on to hope that the Russians would move to de-escalate the situation through diplomacy.

“The key thing is that the United States needs to be and is prepared for any of those contingencies and in lockstep with our allies and partners,” Sullivan said. “We have reinforced and reassured our allies on the eastern flank.”

Sullivan appeared on “Fox News Sunday,” NBC’s “Meet the Press” and ABC’s “This Week”.