Russian forces stay in Belarus; Biden convenes NSC about invasion ...

British PM warns of economic sanctions if Russia invades; Johnson speaks with Macron about UkraineU.S. Embassy in Moscow cautions Americans to have evacuation plans, avoid crowdsProtesters in several European and U.S. cities urge Putin to back offBiden convenes National Security Council to discuss UkraineEuropean Council president warns of ‘massive sanctions,’ which would ‘also be a cost for us, in Europe’Video shows journalists and Ukrainian interior minister running from mortar fireUkrainian ambassador to the U.S. says Russian attacks ‘will not help their cause’Blinken says U.S. not willing to recognize Crimea, eastern Ukraine territories as part of Russia to avoid warWith or without war, Ukraine gives Biden a new lease on leadershipMacron calls Putin, then Zelensky, to push for meeting on cease-firePutin may not stop at Ukraine, as Britain’s foreign secretary warns: ‘Which country will it be next?’ Finnish president Niinisto, who has maintained ties with Putin: Russia taking ‘two steps forward, one back’Blinken: Biden prepared to engage with Putin ‘at any time, in any format’ to prevent warWhy some observers think Sunday will be the day Russia acts against UkraineHarris responds to Zelensky’s criticism about silence on sanctionsBritish PM warns of economic sanctions if Russia invades; Johnson speaks with Macron about UkraineU.S. Embassy in Moscow cautions Americans to have evacuation plans, avoid crowdsProtesters in several European and U.S. cities urge Putin to back offBiden convenes National Security Council to discuss UkraineEuropean Council president warns of ‘massive sanctions,’ which would ‘also be a cost for us, in Europe’Video shows journalists and Ukrainian interior minister running from mortar fireUkrainian ambassador to the U.S. says Russian attacks ‘will not help their cause’Blinken says U.S. not willing to recognize Crimea, eastern Ukraine territories as part of Russia to avoid warWith or without war, Ukraine gives Biden a new lease on leadershipMacron calls Putin, then Zelensky, to push for meeting on cease-firePutin may not stop at Ukraine, as Britain’s foreign secretary warns: ‘Which country will it be next?’ Finnish president Niinisto, who has maintained ties with Putin: Russia taking ‘two steps forward, one back’Blinken: Biden prepared to engage with Putin ‘at any time, in any format’ to prevent warWhy some observers think Sunday will be the day Russia acts against UkraineHarris responds to Zelensky’s criticism about silence on sanctionsPresident Biden met with the National Security Council Sunday to discuss the threat of war in Ukraine as officials warn that Moscow is stepping up its disinformation campaign in a bid to create a pretext for a military attack that the president has warned could come “in the coming days.”The NSC meeting lasted a little over two hours, with Vice President Harris calling in from Air Force Two on her way back to Washington from Munich, an administration official said.Meanwhile, Belarus’s defense minister extended military exercises with Russian forces that were otherwise set to end Sunday, and he announced a joint task force to “fight back if necessary.”The announcement that Russian forces would not return to base as planned contradicted the country’s previous assertion that not a single Russian troop or piece of equipment would remain after the drill. Before the exercise began 10 days ago, Western military analysts warned that it could be cover for an attack force to invade Ukraine from the north and potentially encircle the capital Kyiv.Here’s what to knowNews•News•The United Kingdom and the United States could take steps to prevent Russian companies from trading in British pounds and U.S. dollars if Russian President Vladimir Putin invades Ukraine, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Sunday.“We are even, with our American friends, going to stop them trading in pounds and dollars,” Johnson said in an interview with the BBC, adding that the move “will hit very, very hard.”London-listed Russian firms probably will be on the list of establishments targeted by possible sanctions, the Guardian reported, noting that companies with U.K.-traded shares paid Russia’s government an estimated 39 billion pounds ($53 billion) in taxes in 2020.On Sunday evening, E.U. leader Ursula von der Leyen said Russia could be “cut off from the international financial markets” if it invaded, the Guardian reported.Also on Sunday, Johnson spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron about “their respective diplomatic efforts, including President Macron’s call with President Putin,” according to a news release from Johnson’s office.“The Prime Minister noted that President Putin’s commitments to President Macron were a welcome sign that he might still be willing to engage in finding a diplomatic solution. pic.twitter.com/3q3jL7ea77In a tweet, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova asked whether the U.S. Embassy had “share[d] the data with Russian colleagues through partner channels.”“And if not, how is one to understand all of this?” Zakharova said.Hundreds of people gathered in several European cities and the United States in solidarity with Ukraine as the small nation braced for a potential invasion by its Russian neighbor.On Sunday, hundreds of protesters waved Ukrainian, Polish and E.U. flags in Warsaw, with some holding signs that read “We Are With Ukraine” and “Hands Off Ukraine,” according to Agence France-Press and local media outlets.In Madrid, the AFP reported that about 500 people demonstrated against Russian military aggression in Plaza de España, where participants also waved blue and yellow Ukrainian flags or wore them on their backs.“We are worried for the future of our homeland and for what could happen to our families, but we are not afraid,” Yuriy Chopyk, a Ukrainian living in Spain who was at the protest told 20 Minutos, a local news site.“Every Ukrainian is a soldier and will defend their land,” he added.The protests echoed the pleas of Western leaders who in recent days have urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to call off troops near Ukraine.Across the Atlantic, about 300 demonstrators gathered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington on Sunday afternoon.Ukrainian Americans and other supporters draped flags over their shoulders or hoisted signs into the air, demanding that Putin withdraw his troops.Some in the crowd were optimistic that the demonstration would also send a strong message to the White House and encourage President Biden to impose stricter sanctions against Russia. Biden has said he is convinced Russian President Vladimir Putin, with more than 150,000 troops and massive weaponry amassed on Ukraine’s borders, has decided to invade, despite the West’s offered carrot of negotiations over a new European security architecture to address his concerns if he withdraws, and the threatened stick of harsh sanctions and isolation if he does not.But regardless of the outcome, officials, diplomats and experts have already begun charting the winners and losers.With Western officials warning that Russia could launch an attack on Ukraine at any moment, French President Emmanuel Macron made another attempt at diplomacy Sunday, phoning both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.Macron’s conversation with Putin lasted 90 minutes, according to Kremlin pool reporters.Macron’s office said the two agreed to work on facilitating a meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group — which includes Ukraine, Russia and the Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe — to be held in the next few hours with the aim of agreeing to a cease-fire on the line of contact between Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists.But the Kremlin’s readout of their discussion didn’t mention a possible Trilateral Contact Group meeting. Moscow and the separatists have claimed that Ukraine is firing on their positions, which is denied by Ukrainian officials.Russian President Vladimir Putin “will not stop at Ukraine,” British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said, warning that neighboring countries could be targeted if the international community fails to “stand up” to what she called “Russian aggression.”“It could be Ukraine next week, but then which country will it be next?” Truss said in an interview with Britain’s Mail on Sunday as she called on Britain and its allies to avert a global crisis.Truss pointed to Putin’s ambitions to “create the Greater Russia,” saying that she believes “he wants to go back to the situation as it was before where Russia had control over huge swaths of Eastern Europe.” ” … He’s been very clear — his ambition doesn’t just lead to him taking control of Ukraine, he wants to turn the clock back to the mid-1990s or even before then.” Truss cited the Baltic states and the western Balkans as being at risk.Met @DmytroKuleba at @MunSecConf to reinforce UK’s resolute economic, defensive and political support for Ukraine.