How Far Would Biden Go to Defend Ukraine Against Russia?

WASHINGTON — At a quality league a fewer days ago, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken was asked whether the Biden medication had a “red line” successful Ukraine, a constituent beyond which Russian aggression toward the state would incite a melodramatic American response.

Mr. Blinken wouldn’t bite. “The U.S. has existent concerns astir Russia’s antithetic subject enactment connected the borderline with Ukraine,” helium said, with notable understatement. No reddish enactment was drawn. The State Department spokesperson batted speech a akin question connected Tuesday, saying lone that “any escalatory oregon assertive actions would beryllium of large concern.”

U.S. officials often debar questions astir reddish lines, which erstwhile crossed tin harm their credibility if they bash not act. But successful the lawsuit of Russia — which has been moving the estimated 90,000 troops it has connected its borderline with Ukraine successful ways that officials accidental mightiness presage an penetration — the Biden medication has been conspicuously vague astir when, and how, it mightiness travel to Ukraine’s defense.

That has raised questions astir however acold President Biden would beryllium consenting to spell successful a confrontation with Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, implicit Ukraine. Mr. Biden’s Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, resisted powerfully expanding America’s committedness to Ukraine because, helium said, Mr. Putin would ever rise the ante adjacent more. Mr. Obama different mostly delegated Ukraine affairs to Mr. Biden, past his vice president, who visited the state respective times, extolling its independence.

Despite his idiosyncratic concern successful Ukraine’s fate, however, it is unclear however overmuch Mr. Biden whitethorn beryllium consenting to hazard connected the country’s behalf arsenic helium fixates connected contention with China. His elder officials person said repeatedly that their extremity with Russia is to make a narration of stableness and predictability.

In a connection connected Wednesday honoring the millions of Ukrainians who starved to decease nether Joseph Stalin, Mr. Biden said the United States “also reaffirms our committedness to the radical of Ukraine contiguous and our unwavering enactment for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”

For now, the Biden medication is focusing connected diplomatic channels to deter and dissuade Mr. Putin, according to radical acquainted with the matter. Those could yet see a 2nd face-to-face gathering betwixt Mr. Biden and Mr. Putin: Last week, the Kremlin’s spokesperson said Washington and Moscow were discussing different imaginable summit.

Mr. Biden’s medication views continued dialog with Mr. Putin arsenic important to stopping him from taking enactment against Ukraine.

At the aforesaid time, U.S. officials are hammering retired steps with spouse countries to punish immoderate Russian provocations, including caller economical sanctions.

“We person medication officials successful Europe trying to enactment towards coordinating what those economical measures would be,” said Andrea Kendall-Taylor, a Russia adept with the Center for a New American Security who advised the Biden modulation team. She said specified enactment could see sanctions connected Russian banks and vigor producers and the country’s sovereign debt.

Nevertheless, American and British officials person discussed imposing tougher sanctions connected radical adjacent to Mr. Putin, including immoderate measures that were considered, but enactment aside, aft Moscow’s agents utilized a nervus cause successful an effort to termination a former Russian quality officer successful Britain successful 2018.

Measures nether information see blocking Russian oligarchs from utilizing Visa and Mastercard recognition cards and restricting wherever they and their families tin question successful Britain and Europe, arsenic good arsenic different kinds of sanctions that mightiness get Mr. Putin’s attraction rapidly but harm parts of the American oregon European economy.

A Ukrainian authoritative said the United States was considering a bundle of accrued subject assistance to Ukraine. (The Biden medication is sending much than $400 cardinal successful information assistance to Ukraine this year.) But American officials are hesitant to sermon Washington’s support, for fearfulness of escalating the concern further.

Fiona Hill, who served arsenic the National Security Council’s manager for Russia successful the Trump White House, added that 1 of Mr. Putin’s goals was to onslaught a woody with the United States that excluded European input.

“This is truly a situation to Europeans to measurement up successful solidarity with the United States,” she said. “The United States shouldn’t beryllium the premier mover here.”

But Ms. Kendall-Taylor said Mr. Putin mightiness uncertainty Western willingness to travel through. “I deliberation determination is simply a calculation connected Putin’s portion that determination volition beryllium a deficiency of resoluteness successful the West,” she said, adding that the Russian person recognizes that the United States successful peculiar is determined to absorption its attraction connected China.

Russia has not explicitly threatened to invade Ukraine, but it has complained of alleged provocations from the Ukrainian broadside of their shared border. Mr. Putin has supported a pro-Russian separatist insurgency successful the erstwhile Soviet republic’s eastbound since 2014, erstwhile a fashionable gyration ousted Ukraine’s Putin-backed president. Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula soon afterward.

In a motion of the expanding tensions, the president of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley, spoke by telephone connected Tuesday with his Russian counterpart, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. The Pentagon said successful a connection that the telephone was meant to “ensure hazard simplification and operational de-confliction.”

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has said that the United States is providing accusation and information to Kyiv astir the Russian unit buildup. Western officials person confirmed that NATO allies are stepping up quality sharing with Ukraine, successful hopes that a amended knowing of the rising menace volition assistance Kyiv amended hole and amended deter Moscow.

Even successful worst-case scenarios, astir analysts say, Kyiv should not expect the U.S. subject to travel to its rescue.

“The Russians cognize afloat well, due to the fact that they’ve been invading Ukraine for 7 years now, that we’re not going to nonstop successful the 82nd Airborne,” said Samuel Charap, a erstwhile State Department authoritative present with the RAND Corporation. “And I deliberation they person apt priced successful everything abbreviated of that, successful the consciousness that they are consenting to wage the price.”

“That’s what makes this hard,” helium added. “There’s nary casual mode retired of this.”

American officials said they did not judge that Mr. Putin had yet decided whether to instrumentality subject enactment against Ukraine. While the menace is being taken seriously, officials said, the United States and its allies person clip to effort to hole Kyiv and person Moscow that specified a determination would beryllium a unspeakable mistake.

Whatever Mr. Putin’s thinking, his unit buildup is apt to trial the willingness of the United States, NATO and Europe to act.