Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Russia, Vladimir Putin, Politics, World News
Shola Lee
What Vladimir Putin Wants From Ukraine Conflict (Alamy)
Amid growing tension at the Ukraine border, people are wondering why Vladimir Putin might want to invade his neighbouring country.
Concerns about a pending invasion were sparked when more than 100,000 Russian troops were reportedly deployed around Ukraine's borders.
NATO has since placed forces on standby and US president Joe Biden said last week he would send troops to the surrounding regions who are 'part of NATO' if the situation continues to escalate.
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Biden affirmed: 'We’re going to actually increase troop presence in Poland, in Romania, et cetera, if in fact he moves'.
In addition, the European Union (EU) is allegedly prepared to impose 'never-seen-before' sanctions on Russia should an invasion occur.
Jeppe Kofod, a Danish Foreign Minister, said that the EU is 'ready to undertake the most severe sanctions, also more severe than in 2014'. Kofod is referencing Russia's invasion of Crimea, which occurred shortly after the Sochi Winter Olympic Games.
While Russia has denied the planned invasion claims, the increasingly tense situation has led many to speculate why an invasion might take place.
On Fox News this morning, January 24, Representative for Florida Michael Waltz felt 'it's very likely that Putin is going to invade'.
Waltz added that an invasion 'can destabilise Europe', something he believes Putin is attempting to do in an effort to 'reconstitute the old Soviet Union and challenge the United States on the world stage'.
Fear has continued to mount surrounding a possible invasion as news of Russia undertaking joint exercises with Belarus next month has been reported.
Jennifer Griffin, the National Security Correspondent for Fox News, tweeted about the exercises and called it a 'dress rehearsal' for a potential invasion.
The exercise is set to take place the same day that the Winter Olympic Games in Beijing conclude, causing many to wonder if a repeat of the 2014 invasion will occur.
The current situation is still developing and Russia continues to deny claims of invasion, denouncing NATO's response as 'hysteria'.
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