‘WE HAVE BEEN LEFT ALONE’: Day two of the Russian invasion of Ukraine saw more missiles and artillery fire rock the capital of Kyiv, as Russian paratroopers attempt to seize strategic positions, including an airport about 15 miles from the city center in what appeared to be the early stages of a “decapitation” strategy aimed at toppling the pro-Western government.
“According to our information, the enemy has listed me as target No. 1 and my family — as target No. 2. They want to destroy the country politically, terminating the head of state,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a late night video address before moving to a secure bunker.
As the day wore on, reports came in that advancing Russian forces had entered a northern district of the capital, and citizens were urged to stay indoors and “prepare Molotov cocktails,” according to the New York Times.
“We have been left alone to defend our state. Who is ready to fight alongside us? I don’t see anyone,” he lamented. “Who is ready to give Ukraine a guarantee of NATO membership? Everyone is afraid.”
Zelensky said on the first day of fighting, 300 Ukrainian troops were wounded and 137 died, while his forces were able to shoot down several Russian aircraft and killed an estimated 400 invaders. The Pentagon said more than 160 missiles were fired at Ukraine Thursday from land, air, and sea.
Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed that Ukrainian troops “are leaving their positions in large numbers, dropping their weapons,” according to the Russian News Agency Tass.
RUSSIA HAS ‘EVERY INTENTION OF BASICALLY DECAPITATING’ UKRAINIAN GOVERNMENT
‘WE WILL FIGHT. THIS IS OUR LAND’: In a defiant interview on Fox, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he would return to Ukraine to join Zelensky in hiding.
“I’m a human being. Of course I’m concerned for my life, for the life of my family,” Kuleba told Fox News anchor Bret Baier. “It’s true that I’m on the list, and I’m one of the targets for the Russians. But if a Ukrainian soldier is fighting these days in the trench, these hours in the trench, and sacrificing his life, how can I not be with them?”
Today, Ukrainian forces blew up a key bridge north of Kyiv to slow the advance of Russian armor, but Kuleba said Ukraine is in desperate need of more weapons and ammunition to blunt the Russian offensive, including more Javelin anti-tank missiles and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles.
And Kuleba claimed the strategic Gostomel airfield, initially seized by Russian forces, had been retaken in a counteroffensive, while heavy fighting continues there. “So, this is an example that even if we lose the ground, even if we lose the battlefield, it doesn’t mean that we abandon it. We just mobilize forces and try to win it back.”
“We will fight. This is our land. These are our people,” Kuleba said. “Yes, we are facing a much stronger force against us, but we are fighting on our soil for our land. And there were many cases in the history of the world where a smaller nation would prevail over a bigger one simply because it was fighting on the right side of history.”
UKRAINIAN DEFENDERS TELL RUSSIAN WARSHIP ‘GO F*** YOURSELF’ BEFORE DEATH ON SNAKE ISLAND: REPORT
BLINKEN: 90% OF UKRAINIANS ‘DETEST’ PUTIN: Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the rounds of the evening news shows, and on ABC, he predicted that despite its military might, Russia will face stiff resistance, not just from Ukraine’s military, but its people.
“One of the things that Vladimir Putin has done, starting back in 2014 when they first went into Ukraine, seizing Crimea … is to totally alienate the Ukrainian people,” Blinken told ABC’s David Muir.
“Ninety percent of Ukrainians now, if I can use the word, ‘detest’ Russia and certainly detest President Putin. My prediction would be that one way or another, they will strongly resist any effort to take away their sovereignty, take away their independence, take away their government.”
Asked directly if Putin’s plan was to overthrow the Zelensky government, Blinked replied, “I’m convinced he’s going to try to do that.”
BLINKEN ‘CONVINCED’ PUTIN AIMS TO OVERTHROW UKRAINIAN GOVERNMENT
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HAPPENING TODAY: In the White House Situation Room, President Joe Biden meets by teleconference at 9 a.m. with his 29 fellow NATO leaders in an “extraordinary” virtual summit called by NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss the alliance response to what Stoltenberg called, “Russia’s unjustified and unprovoked attack,” and “a brutal act of war.”
“This is the new normal for our security. Peace cannot be taken for granted,” Stoltenberg said yesterday. “Freedom and democracy are contested by authoritarian regimes, and strategic competition is on the rise. We must respond with renewed resolve and even stronger unity.”
Stoltenberg is scheduled to make brief remarks to reporters at NATO headquarters around 8:30 a.m., before the virtual meeting, and conduct a full press briefing afterward at 11 a.m. Both will be livestreamed at nato.int.
NATO ACTIVATES RESPONSE FORCE: At yesterday’s meeting of NATO’s North Atlantic Council, NATO activated its 40,000-strong NATO Response Force, triggering the dispatch of 7,000 additional U.S. troops to Europe.
“I’m authorizing additional U.S. forces capabilities to deploy to Germany as part of NATO’s response, including some of the U.S.-based forces that the Department of Defense placed on standby weeks ago,” Biden said yesterday.
“This is a prudent and defensive step to protect and shield allied nations during this crisis,” said Stoltenberg, who said the forward deployment of NATO forces came at the request of U.S. European and Supreme NATO Commander Army Gen. Tod Walters.
The Pentagon identified the bulk of the U.S. contribution as troops from the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Georgia. The recent deployments add some 12,000 U.S. troops to the 80,000 already based in Europe.
BIDEN DEPLOYS THOUSANDS MORE TROOPS BUT SAYS THEY WON’T FIGHT IN UKRAINE
PUTIN WOULDN’T ATTACK NATO, WOULD HE? The reinforcements on NATO’s eastern flank, particularly in the Balkan countries of Estonia and Latvia, which border Russia, come as the U.S. believes Putin’s territorial ambitions extend beyond Ukraine.
“He has much larger ambitions than Ukraine,” Biden said at a Thursday news conference, referring to Putin’s hourlong Monday speech, in which he outlined a litany of grievances against the United States and the West.
“He wants to, in fact, reestablish the former Soviet Union. That’s what this is about. And I think that his ambitions are completely contrary to the place where the rest of the world has arrived,” Biden said, as he announced another round of sanctions aimed at crippling Russia’s ability to conduct business in the global marketplace.
“If he did move into NATO countries … we will be involved,” Biden said. “The only thing that I’m convinced of is if we don’t stop now, he’ll be emboldened. If we don’t move against him now with these significant sanctions, he will be emboldened.”
‘WE WILL DEFEND EVERY INCH OF NATO TERRITORY’: “Is it a possibility that Putin goes beyond Ukraine? Sure, it’s a possibility,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on ABC. “But there’s something very powerful standing in the way of that. That’s something we call Article 5 of NATO. That means an attack on one member of NATO is an attack on all members of NATO.”
“The president’s been very clear that we will defend every inch of NATO territory,” Blinken said. “I think that’s the most powerful deterrent against President Putin going beyond Ukraine.”
TIME TO MAKE SANCTIONS PERSONAL? Bipartisan pressure is building in Congress to ratchet up the pain for Putin by imposing sanctions that target him personally, including his ill-gotten gains.
Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton, a former Marine Corps officer, repeated his call for Putin to “have trouble buying a soda from a vending machine,” during an appearance on CNN last night.
“I’m very pleased with what the administration has done thus far. But we need to go further,” Moulton said. “We’re not there yet. We haven’t targeted Putin specifically, we haven’t targeted a widespread number of oligarchs, there’s clearly still more that we can do. And I think the administration is working on that.”
At his news conference yesterday, Biden said sanctions targeting Putin directly were “not a bluff, it’s on the table.”
“The Biden Administration continues to misread the moment,” said South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham in an email statement. “We should not be seeking permission from allies to go after Putin and his cronies. We should move ahead forcefully against Putin, a war criminal, and demand our allies join us.”
“Putin and his inner circle live large all over the world. It is past time for democracies to bring him to account,” Graham said. “Not giving clarity to Putin about what would happen if he invaded Ukraine was a mistake. Not going after him personally is an even bigger mistake.”
MENENDEZ: ‘MORE WE CAN AND SHOULD DO’: The Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is also calling on Biden to do more, even as he praised the president for the measures he announced yesterday, including additional sanctions on Russian banks and oligarchs as well as new tough export controls.
“The sanctions … will exact a significant toll on the Russian economy, including by blocking some of the largest banks in Russia; mirroring the steps I have called for in legislation,” said New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez.
“There is more that we can and should do,” he added. “Congress and the Biden administration must not shy away from any options — including sanctioning the Russian Central Bank, removing Russian banks from the SWIFT payment system, crippling Russia’s key industries, sanctioning Putin personally, and taking all steps to deprive Putin and his inner circle of their assets.”
THE DEBATE OVER SWIFT: SWIFT, an acronym for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, is the world’s main international payments network. Barring Russia would severely hamper its ability to do business with other countries.
Asked about SWIFT yesterday, Biden insisted the sanctions that he has ordered — which freeze nearly $1 trillion in Russian assets and prohibit Russia from doing business in dollars, euros, pounds, and yen — exceed what SWIFT sanctions would achieve.
“The sanctions that we have proposed on all their banks have the equal consequence, maybe more consequence than SWIFT, number one. Number two, it is always an option, but right now, that’s not the position that the rest of Europe wishes to take.”
THIS IS GOING TO TAKE TIME: Perhaps Biden’s most controversial comment came when he admitted that his administration’s sanctions threat never exceeded the price that Putin was willing to pay, which is why they failed to deter his aggression.
“No one expected the sanctions to prevent anything from happening,” Biden said in what seemed to be an admission that his post-invasion sanctions threat never stood a chance against Putin’s revanchist dreams.
“This is going to take time. It’s not going to occur — he’s not going to say, ‘Oh my God, these sanctions are coming, I’m going to stand down.’ He’s going to test the resolve of the West to see if we stay together, and we will — we will, and it will impose significant costs on him,” Biden said.
BIDEN ON RUSSIA: ‘NO ONE EXPECTED THE SANCTIONS TO PREVENT ANYTHING FROM HAPPENING’
WALTZ: IT DIDN’T HAVE TO TURN OUT LIKE THIS: “This invasion could have been deterred had the Biden Administration maintained sanctions on Nord Stream 2, pressured our NATO allies to move away from energy reliability on Russia, forcefully responded to the Kremlin-linked hacks on the Colonial Pipeline last year, and implemented preventive sanctions on Russia prior to their invasion into Ukraine,” said Florida Republican Rep. Mike Waltz.
“The United States must publicly support Ukrainian resistance efforts should Russia succeed in its military invasion. Putin must understand the costs of invading a sovereign country and know that this will turn into a bloody quagmire — much like that of the Soviet Union’s occupation of Chechnya,” Waltz said in a statement.
‘ULTIMATE TEST OF BRINKMANSHIP’: US PREPS FOR HIGH-STAKES PROXY WAR AGAINST RUSSIA IN UKRAINE
INHOFE TO RETIRE: The senior Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe, is expected to announce plans to retire at the end of the year.
Inhofe, 87, was first elected to the Senate in 1994, and while a sharp critic of President Joe Biden, was known for his deep knowledge of national security issues and his willingness to work with his Democratic colleagues on the Armed Services Committee, which he led when Republicans controlled the Senate.
Inhofe is expected to announce on Monday that he will step down at the end of this year, which would result in a special election for someone else to serve the final four years of his current term.
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The Rundown
Washington Examiner: Blinken ‘convinced’ Putin aims to overthrow Ukrainian government
Washington Examiner: Russia has ‘every intention of basically decapitating’ Ukrainian government
Washington Examiner: Biden deploys thousands more troops but says they won’t fight in Ukraine
Washington Examiner: US expels Russia’s second-in-command diplomat at DC embassy
Washington Examiner: Ukrainian defenders tell Russian warship ‘go f*** yourself’ before death on Snake Island: Report
Washington Examiner: Veterans write to Milley to protest ‘woke’ political agenda
Washington Examiner: Ultimate test of brinkmanship’: US preps for high-stakes proxy war against Russia in Ukraine
Washington Examiner: White House goes with sanctions as Russia begins invasion
Washington Examiner: Biden on Russia: ‘No one expected the sanctions to prevent anything from happening’
Washington Examiner: Large blasts heard in Kyiv as Russian forces converge on Ukrainian capital
Washington Examiner: Zelensky moved to secret bunker as Russian forces approach: Report
Washington Examiner: White House declines to share Zelensky’s whereabouts amid threats to his life
Washington Examiner: Ukrainians ‘lining up to collect guns’ as Russian invasion underway
Washington Examiner: Mayor of Kyiv and former world heavyweight champ Vitali Klitschko says he will fight to protect capital
Washington Examiner: Sean Penn filming documentary on Russian invasion in Ukraine
Washington Examiner: White House ‘outraged’ by ‘credible reports’ of Russian soldiers holding Chernobyl staff hostage
Washington Examiner: SEE IT: Monuments and buildings around world lit with Ukrainian colors
New York Times: Ukraine says Russian troops entered the outskirts of Kyiv.
USNI News: Russian Navy Has Limited Role In Initial Invasion Of Ukraine
Reuters: NATO Leaves Black Sea Exposed As Russia Invades Ukraine
Air Force Magazine: F-35s, B-52 Arrive at NATO’s Eastern Front as Russia Invades Ukraine
Washington Post: Across Russia, Thousands Defy Curbs On Dissent To Protest Putin’s Action
Military.com: Taiwanese Fighters Scrambled Amid Fears Beijing Could Be Emboldened By Ukraine Invasion
AP: For Taiwan, Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine Feels Far Away
Bloomberg: Troubled Littoral Ship Still Can’t Perform Mission, GAO Says
19fortyfive.com: Is Russia’s New Su-57 Stealth Fighter Going to War in Ukraine?
19fortyfive.com: Russia’s War on Ukraine: What Does Putin Hope to Achieve?
19fortyfive.com: Ignored Warnings: How NATO Expansion Led to the Current Ukraine Tragedy
Calendar
FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 25
8:15 a.m. — Government Executive Media Group virtual forum: “Doing Business with the Army,” with Matthew Paul, project manager at the Distributed Common Ground System-Army; Gayna Malcom-Packnett, interim associate director of small business programs at the Army Futures Command; and Wayne Sok, product lead at Army Chess https://events.washingtontechnology.com/army
9 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “Democracy in Danger: The Russian Threat to Ukraine,” with Rep. Tom Malinowski, D-N.J.; and Andrew Lohsen, fellow, CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program https://www.csis.org/events/ukraine-crisis
9 a.m. — Woodrow Wilson Center Middle East Program virtual discussion: “Turkey’s Role in the Russian-Ukrainian Crisis,” with Turkish Ambassador to the United States Murat Mercan https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/conversation
10 a.m. — Center for the National Interest webina: “ What Comes Next with Russia,” with George Beebe, vice president and director of studies at the Center for the National Interest; retired Col. Douglas Macgregor, former adviser to the Secretary of Defense in the Trump administration; Paul Heer, distinguished fellow, Center for the National Interest and former CIA analyst; and Dimitri Simes, president and CEO, Center for the National Interest https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
11 a.m. — Center for a New American Security special event: “War in Ukraine, What Next?” with Andrea Kendall-Taylor, director, Transatlantic Security Program, CNAS; Michael Kofman, adjunct senior fellow, Transatlantic Security Program, CNAS; Jeffrey Edmonds, adjunct senior fellow, Transatlantic Security Program, CNAS; and Richard Fontaine, CEO, CNAS https://www.cnas.org/events/special-event-war-in-ukraine
11 a.m. — Nuclear Threat Initiative virtual discussion: “From Cyber Attack to Nuclear War: Avoiding Escalation through Cooperation,” former State Department Coordinator for Cyber Issues Christopher Painter, president of the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise Foundation https://www.nti.org/events/christopher-painter
TUESDAY | MARCH 1
10 a.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Committee hearing: “Engagement with Allies and Partners,” with testimony from Mara Karlin, assistant secretary of defense for strategy, plans, and capabilities; Jessica Lewis, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
10 a.m. CLOSED — Senate Foreign Relations Committee CLOSED hearing: “U.S. Hostage Policy,” with testimony from Roger Carstens, special presidential envoy for hostage affairs; and Chris O’Leary, director for hostage recovery fusion cell, Federal Bureau of Investigation https://www.foreign.senate.gov/hearings/us-hostage-policy030122
10 a.m. — National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations online discussion: “An Emerging Axis: Strategic Trends Between Saudi Arabia, Russia, and China, and What it Means for the Middle East,” with David Rundell, former chief of mission at the American Embassy in Saudi Arabia and author of “Vision or Mirage: Saudi Arabia at the Crossroads”; and Michael Gfoeller, retired U.S. foreign service officer with service in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Moscow, Russia https://www.youtube.com/user/NCUSAR
2 p.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces hearing: “Fiscal Year 2023 Strategic Forces Posture Hearing,” with testimony from Sasha Baker, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Policy; Adm. Charles Richard, commander, U.S. Strategic Command; Army Gen. James Dickinson, commander, U.S. Space Command; and Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 2
2 p.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel hearing: “Assessing the Effectiveness of Suicide Prevention Programs,” with testimony from Bonnie Carroll, president and founder, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors; Dr. Craig Bryan, director, Suicide Prevention Program, hio State University Wexner Medical Center; Dr. Karen Orvis, director, Defense Suicide Prevention Office; Dr. Richard Mooney, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense, health services policy and oversight https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
THURSDAY | MARCH 3
9 a.m. — American Enterprise Institute web event, “A conversation with House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith,” with Mackenzie Eaglen, senior fellow, AEI, Kori Schake, director, foreign and defense policy Studies, AEI https://www.aei.org/events/a-conversation
10 a.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Subcommittees on Seapower and Projection Forces and Readiness Joint hearing: “State of the Surface Navy,” with testimony from Adm. William Lescher, vice chief of naval operations; and Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener, commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
WEDNESDAY | MARCH 9
10 a.m. — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence virtual event with Audrey Schaffer, director for space policy, National Security Council; and retired Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton, explorer chair, Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence. https://go.afa.org
THURSDAY | MARCH 10
10:30 a.m. — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies Nuclear Deterrence and Missile Defense Forum, with Barry Pavel, director, Atlantic Council Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security; Matthew Kroenig, deputy director, Atlantic Council Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security; and retired Air Force Lt. Gen. David Deptula, dean, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies https://go.afa.org
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“We will fight. This is our land. These are our people … And, yes, we are facing a much stronger force against us, but we are fighting on our soil for our land. And there were many cases in the history of the world where a smaller nation would prevail over a bigger one, simply because it was fighting on the right side of history.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in an interview on Fox.
