This could be it for Europe as Russia deploys ‘tactical bombers’ with ‘helicopters taking up forward staging’ near Ukraine

The Russian President Vladimir Putin has deployed “tactical bombers” to airfields very close to Ukraine border.

Russian “helicopters” are “taking up forward staging” near to the border which now suggests an invasion is now “imminent.”

The Ukraine is almost surrounded by Russian forces as there are some 90,000 troops in Belarus, with an estimated 130,000 on the Russian border.

There is also “thousands more troops on amphibious shipping in the Black Sea” and “Russia has concentrated artillery missile systems and combat air in the area.”

The Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said today that although it “grabs less headlines, all of the combat enablers, the logistics, the fuel, the medical supplies, the bridging assets, are all also now in place.”

The British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who chaired a meeting of the Government’s Cobra emergency committee, is strongly advising all Britons to leave Ukraine by commercial routes while they still can, because of the risk of an “imminent Russian invasion.”

The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Putin the EU and NATO’s responses to Russian security was not satisfactory.

Indefinite talks are not possible, but Lavrov did propose to Putin to continue with diplomatic talks.

Analysts are increasingly pessimistic that Russia is set to invade and warn this is now inevitable as the jigsaw is now falling into a clear picture.

The Times’ Defence Editor, Larisa Brown has reported that Russia is now thought to have 100 battalion tactical groups near Ukraine’s border, this is up from 83 last week.

She warned that this is enough troops to “mount large scale military operations.”

The Defence Editor said this now amounts to more than 60% of Russia’s ground combat power and another 14 battalions are on their way.

Michael Kofman, the director of Russia Studies at the Center of Naval Analyses, tweeted: “Seeing the last main pieces of this buildup. 1st GTA generating more BTGs. Same for Airborne.

“Tactical bombers deploying to nearby airfields (Su-34s). Helicopters taking up forward staging. District lvl support assets pulling up to the border.”

Seeing the last main pieces of this buildup. 1st GTA generating more BTGs. Same for Airborne. Tactical bombers deploying to nearby airfields (Su-34s). Helicopters taking up forward staging. District lvl support assets pulling up to the border.

— Michael Kofman (@KofmanMichael) February 14, 2022

Kofman added, “The proposed recognition of DNR/LNR to be reviewed by the Duma on February 14th looks like it may offer a basis for Russia to extend security guarantees, and militarily protect those considered to be Russian citizens living in the separatist regions.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and they delivered a joint news briefing following crisis talks over escalating tensions.

President Zelenskyy said, “We can see that the escalation of the conflict … is of high concern and it is beneficial to everyone, to the whole European Union, to ensure the security of Ukraine.”

New footage emerged on Friday showing “atomic cannons” within 10 miles from Ukraine border which has sparked new warnings there could be a nuclear war.

The Russian 2S7 Pion weapons are capable of firing self propelled nuclear tipped shells and have moved to the city of Vesela Lopan, Bolgorod which is 10 miles from the Ukrainian border.

The Pion weapons are also known as “Soviet atomic cannons” and are highly effective which can carry 4 203mm nuclear shells which would decimate large areas of towns and cities.