Ukrainian military vehicles move past Independence Square in central Kyiv on Feb. 24.
Daniel Leal/Getty ImagesUS President Joe Biden is expected to announce more sanctions against Russia as a response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Late Wednesday, Biden called Russia’s attack of Ukraine a “premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life.” The president met with the US National Security Council and international leaders in the Group of Seven, or G7, on Thursday morning to discuss a joint response.
Biden is scheduled to speak from the White House at 1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT. You can watch live on the White House website or the administration’s official YouTube channel. And you can also watch below.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared the start of a “special military operation” in Ukraine early Thursday. Shortly after, explosions were reported in multiple cities, including Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, and Kyiv, the country’s capital, which is home to nearly 3 million people.
In addition to these attacks, Russian forces are trying to seize the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, according to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. “This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe,” Zelensky said.
Ukrainian officials have said that more than 40 soldiers and as many as 10 civilians have been killed, with more wounded, according to to CNN.
Tensions had been building for months, marked by angry speeches by Putin and the buildup of Russian forces along Ukraine’s borders. Leaders in Washington and across Europe engaged in diplomatic efforts, but a peaceful resolution wasn’t reached.
Ukraine, which had been part of the Russian-led Soviet Union for much of the 20th century, declared its independence in 1991. Since then, the country has been establishing closer ties with Western European nations and the US.
On Tuesday, Biden announced sanctions aimed at Russian banks, including the country’s military bank, as well as at its sovereign debt and Russian elites and their family members. The economic penalties were part of the administration’s response to Putin on Monday recognizing two Russia-backed regions in eastern Ukraine — Donetsk and Luhansk — as independent entities.
The sanctions against the banks mean the US has “cut off Russia’s government from Western financing,” Biden said Tuesday. “It can no longer raise money from the West and cannot trade its new debt on our markets, or European markets either.”
When Biden initially declared these sanctions, he used the word “invasion” for the first time. Now that Biden has said Russia’s actions are a “premeditated war,” it’s expected harsher sanctions will be announced.
