Citing information obtained by the US Department of State that Russia will be stepping up efforts to launch strikes against civilian infrastructure and government facilities in Ukraine in the coming days, the US Embassy in Kyiv has advised Americans to leave the country.
Warning that the security situation is highly volatile, and conditions could deteriorate rapidly and without warning, the security alert issued on the Embassy’s website on Tuesday says that the US Embassy urges US citizens if it is safe to do so, to depart Ukraine using privately available ground transportation options.
The alert comes despite Moscow’s claims that Russian troops only strike military targets – radar stations, weapons depots, armored vehicle repair sites- in Kyiv and elsewhere in Ukraine.
Amid fears of intensified Russian attacks, Ukrainian cities have also begun imposing curbs on events linked to Ukraine’s Independence Day celebrations on Wednesday, which commemorates freedom from Soviet rule, but also marks six months since the Russian invasion has begun.
The city military administration issued a ban on all big gatherings in Kyiv between Monday and Thursday, banning mass events, peaceful meetings, rallies, and other large events.
The US Embassy in the Ukrainian capital formally reopened in May after the State Department evacuated the US diplomats from Kyiv in February.
With the security of the US personnel foremost in mind, the actual reopening of the embassy in Kyiv took place over a couple of weeks, with careful follow-up steps, engaging only the appointed US Charge d’Affaires Kristina Kvien, and a small group of diplomats accompanied by State Department security.
Washington suspended the operations in its embassy in Kyiv in February after initially moving operations to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv and, in the end, relocating it to Poland.
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