russian tanks and troops to cross the border, if he orders his missiles to target key cities and flatten neighborhoods and towns, most of the world will watch in horror and do little more than watch. ukraine will face the invasion alone, what could be the bloodiest since world war ii. retired general cedric leighton. for almost three decades ehe worked as an intelligence officer in the air force. colonel, it is good to see you. thanks for being with us. you bet, john. it s going to be with you. u.s. national security adviser jake sullivan laid out what would happen if this standoff escalates to a hot war. what it would look like. here he is. if there is a military invasion of ukraine by russia, it s likely to begin with a significant barrage of missiles and bomb attacks. those are never as precise as the army any army would like them to be. it would then be followed by the onslaught of a ground force moving across the ukrainian
would look like. if there is a military invasion of ukraine by russia, it s likely to begin with a significant barrage of missiles and bomb attacks. those are never as precise as the army would any army would like them to be and we dont know how precise the russian army would like them to be so innocent civilians could be killed regardless of their nationality. it would then be followed by an onslaught of a ground force moving across the ukrainian frontier. general, if that is the intel assessment, what do you think is happening right now to proactively get in front of that militarily and be ready to defend? well, ukraine has deployed its forces, especially in the north. they are running exercises up there. their border guards are alert, prepared. as jim sciutto said, actions are being taken in kyiv itself on this.
time ago wrapping up a crucial call with ukraine s president where he told him the u.s. would respond, quote, swiftly and decisively to any further russian aggression. national security adviser jake sullivan warned again today that a russian invasion could come at any time. he made it clear there could be dramatic civilian casualties. if there is a military invasion of ukraine by russia it s likely to begin with a significant barrage of missiles and bomb attacks. those are never as precise as the army would any army would like them to be and we don t even know how precise the russian army would like them to be so innocent civilians could be killed regardless of their nationality. it would then be followed by an onslaught of a ground for moving across the ukrainian frontier. the u.s. state department is telling americans inside ukraine to leave the country and no rescues will come for anyone trapped there if russia invades. we re also seeing new radio
today. it would then be followed by an onslaught of a ground force moving across the ukrainian frontier. mike: if you were the u.s. ambassador to ukraine right now, what would be your top priorities? one would be maintaining channels of communication with the ukrainian government and facilitating even today american flights arriving, providing more weapons and defensive equipment for the ukrainians to better enable them to defend themselves and then third doing what you can to assist americans to get out of ukraine given the potential, if not the possibility of a russian assault. mike: you aren t in the pressure cooker as the senior administration official or diplomat in the hot zone. from the outside, is there something the biden administration should have done sooner like sending defensive weapons to ukraine? you know, if you d asked me that question maybe 5 or 6 weeks ago i might have had a different
largest armies in the world. this is a very different situation, and things could go crazy quickly. reporter: another ominous sign today. talks between russia and ukraine have all but collapsed in berlin after nine hours of negotiation, the two sides couldn t even agree to issue a joint statement. it comes as the russians conducted their second day of massive war games around much of the ukrainian frontier. and sent more warships into the black sea. in response to the daily buildup of russian forces, the u.s. sent 90 tons of military aid to ukraine just today, including more javelin anti-tank missiles. as well as ordering the 3,000 soldiers of the 82nd airborne to leave fort bragg for poland. american f-16s also arrived in romania today as u.s. forces continue to bolster nato s eastern flank. but the white house insists no u.s. soldier will step foot in ukraine to fight. for americans who live here, the call for them to leave is hard. 25-year-old american teacher