Blinken: Russia Plans To Manufacture Pretext To Invade Ukraine

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaking at a meeting of the UN Security Council.

• 'The stakes go far beyond Ukraine. 'This is a moment of peril for the lives and safety of millions of people, as well as for the foundation of the UN charter, and the rules-based international order that preserves stability worldwide.'
• "In the past few days, Russian media has already begun to spread… false alarms and claims to maximize public outrage to lay the groundwork for an invented justification for war...Our information indicates clearly that these forces, including ground troops aircraft, ships are preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine. In the coming days."
• "Russia plans to manufacture a pretext...it could be a fabricated so-called terrorist bombing...or a fake, even a real attack using chemical weapons; charges of genocide, making a mockery of a concept that we do not take likely...nor do I, given my family history"
• 'Let me be clear, I am here today not to start a war but to prevent one. 'Information presented here is validated by what we've seen unfolding in plain sight before our eyes for months.'
• "There is another choice Russia can still make, if there is any truth to its claim that it is committed to diplomacy. Diplomacy is the only responsible way to resolve this crisis."