‘AN ABUNDANCE OF CAUTION’: In a rare Sunday night conference call for reporters, the State Department announced it is ordering the families of U.S. government employees at the embassy in Kyiv to leave immediately and telling “non-emergency” embassy employees their departure is authorized on a voluntary basis. Other American citizens in Ukraine are also being urged to consider leaving as well.

“These decisions were made out of an abundance of caution due to continued Russian efforts to destabilize the country and undermine the security of Ukrainian citizens and others visiting or residing in Ukraine,” a senior State Department official said last night. “Do we believe a Russian invasion is imminent? As President Biden has said, military action by Russia could come at any time. The United States government will not be in a position to evacuate U.S. citizens in such a contingency, so U.S. citizens currently present in Ukraine should plan accordingly, including by availing themselves of commercial options should they choose to leave the country.”