Multiple Countries Begin Ukraine Evacuation Ahead of Possible Invasion

Situation update

• The U.S. is not ruling out that Russia could carry out the invasion of Ukraine before the end of the Olympics.
  
• On 12 February, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv ordered the departure of direct hire personnel and announced consular services at the Embassy will be suspended as of 13 February. The Embassy will maintain a small consular presence in Lviv.
  
• Additionally, Poland has indicated to the U.S. government that U.S. citizens may now more freely enter Poland through the land border with Ukraine.  No advanced approval is required. 
  
• Dutch flagship carrier KLM suspended flights in and out of Ukraine effective immediately due to risks of GPS and radar disruptions, and threats from military weapons should Russia invade. Other commercial carriers will likely follow suit, as the window to leave Ukraine by air appears to be narrowing.
  
• Per news reports, the U.S. has warned allies that Russia could attack Ukraine as early as next week but in a White House presser, it also reiterated that it still does not know whether President Putin has made a final decision.
  
• Intelligence suggests that the conflict would begin with two days of aerial bombardment and electronic warfare, followed by an invasion, rendering air, rail, and ground movements highly risky.
  
• There has been a massive uptick in ceasefire violations in the breakaway Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in the past 48 hours. 
• The UK, Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, Latvia are advising all their nationals to leave Ukraine immediately. The EU and Israel are also evacuating non-essential diplomatic staff from Ukraine. Meanwhile, the U.S. is evacuating its members of the OSCE Ukraine Special Monitoring Mission.
• The Biden administration has made a decision to send 3,000 additional troops from the 82 Airborne to Poland in the coming days.
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov canceled a trip to Israel in the last minute where he was expected to land on Monday.  

Advice

• Global Guardian recommends against non-essential travel to Ukraine.
• Expats should consider leaving Ukraine while commercial flights remain available.
• Those who remain in-country should prepare emergency supplies. 
• Secure your assets and prepare your emergency evacuation plan.

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