Russia claims that OSCE talks will not take the role of dialogue with the US and NATO.

Ukraine announced on Tuesday that its concerted diplomatic efforts with Western allies had successfully averted a looming Russian invasion. "We and our allies have managed to prevent Russia from further escalation," Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told reporters. "It is already the middle of February, and you see that diplomacy is continuing to work." 

The US has encouraged its citizens to leave Belarus immediately, citing a buildup of Russian forces near the country's border with Ukraine. The travel warning was issued on the same day that the US announced it was closing its embassy in Kyiv and shifting its employees to Lviv, Ukraine, 335 miles (540 kilometres) away, because to a "dramatic acceleration" in Russian forces' buildup.

The US warned last week that Russia may attack "any day now." "Because of an increase in unusual and alarming Russian military action along the Ukrainian border, U.S. persons in Belarus or considering travel there should be aware that the situation is unpredictable and there is heightened tension in the region," according to the alert.

The State Department ordered all family members of the Minsk embassy to depart last month, according to the report. The United States has already been pushed to leave Ukraine, with the West accusing Russia of encircling the former Soviet state with more than 100,000 troops. Aside from the threat of a military battle on the border, Washington's "do not visit" advice for Belarus cited the risk of arrest, arbitrary law enforcement, and Covid-19 entrance restrictions as grounds for Americans to leave. "Due to Belarusian government restrictions on U.S. Embassy staffing, the US government's ability to provide routine or emergency services to US citizens in Belarus is already severely limited," it said.

Britain warned on Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin still has time to take a step back and withdraw soldiers massed on Ukraine's border. "We could be on the verge of a conflict in Europe," Foreign Minister Liz Truss told Sky News, "which would have grave ramifications not only for the people of Russia and Ukraine, but also for Europe's broader security." "Vladimir Putin still has time to back away from the cliff. But he only has a limited amount of time to do so," she added, implying that an invasion could be "imminent." "..

Last week, Truss met with his Russian colleague, Sergei Lavrov, in Moscow for tense talks. He described it as "a dialogue between a deaf and a mute person." Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, asked Putin to take a step back from the "edge of a cliff" on Monday, saying that an invasion of Ukraine might happen within 48 hours. "On the Ukrainian border, you have about 130,000 troops massed." On a visit to Scotland, Johnson told reporters, "This is a very, very hazardous, tough situation." 

"We are on the verge of a precipice, but President Putin still has time to take a step back," he continued. Johnson will lead a meeting of the Civil Contingencies Committee on Tuesday to review the UK's reaction to the crisis, which is convened to manage problems of national emergency or substantial disruption. On Friday, the government asked all Britons to leave Ukraine on commercial flights, but it also stated that it will keep a "core" diplomatic presence in Kyiv.