: Flights to Ukraine Halted as Crisis Brews #WorldNEWS MOSCOW — Some airlines have canceled or diverted flights to Ukraine amid warnings from the West that an invasion by Russia is imminent despite

Flights to Ukraine Halted as Crisis Brews #WorldNEWS
MOSCOW — Some airlines have canceled or diverted flights to Ukraine amid warnings from the West that an invasion by Russia is imminent despite intensive weekend talks between Moscow and Washington.
In an hourlong call Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Joe Biden said an invasion of Ukraine would cause “widespread human suffering” and that the West was committed to diplomacy to end the crisis but “equally prepared for other scenarios,” the White House said. It offered no suggestion that the call diminished the threat of an imminent war in Europe.
The White House said Biden would talk with Zelenskyy later Sunday.
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On Friday, Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, warned that U. S. intelligence shows a Russian invasion could begin within days. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has played down invasion concerns, urging the country to remain calm.
Russia denies it intends to invade Ukraine but has massed well over 100,000 troops near its border and has sent troops to exercises in neighboring Belarus. U. S. officials say Russia’s buildup of firepower has reached the point where it could invade on short notice.
The U. S. picked up intelligence that Russia is looking at Wednesday as a target date, according to a U. S. official familiar with the findings. The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and did so only on condition of anonymity, would not say how definitive the intelligence was.
“I believe that today in the information space, there is a lot of information,” Zelenskyy said Saturday. “We understand all the risks, we understand that there are risks. If you, or anyone else, has additional information regarding a 100% Russian invasion starting on the 16th, please forward that information to us. ”
Reflecting the Wests concerns, Dutch airline KLM has canceled flights to Ukraine until further notice, the company said Saturday.
Dutch sensitivity to potential danger in Ukrainian airspace is high following the 2014 shooting down of a Malaysian jetliner flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur as it flew over a part of eastern Ukraine held by Russia-backed rebels. All 298 people aboard died, including 198 Dutch citizens.
The Ukrainian charter airline SkyUp said Sunday its flight from Madeira, Portugal, to Kyiv was diverted to the Moldovan capital of Chisinau after the planes Irish lessor said it was banning flights in Ukrainian airspace.
Ukrainian presidential spokesman Serhii Nykyforov told The Associated Press that Ukraine has not closed its airspace. A statement from the Infrastructure Ministry said: “Some carriers are experiencing difficulties associated with fluctuations in the insurance markets.