West warns Russia against 'any' Ukraine incursion

US President Joe Biden said Thursday that any entry of Russian troops into Ukraine is "an invasion," a day after appearing to suggest a "minor" attack could invite a lesser response from NATO allies.

Washington has rejected Moscow's demands as 'non-starters'

The United States and its allies have warned Moscow Thursday of grave consequences if "any" of the tens of thousands of troops massed on the border were to cross the border into Ukraine.

Following talks in Berlin with Germany, France and Britain, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken underlined that Russia "cannot match" Western powers' resoluteness.

In a show of that unity, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, speaking alongside Blinken, said the West would not shy away from taking action even if that included measures that "could have economic consequences for ourselves".

In a bid to defuse the worst tensions between Russia and the West in decades, Blinken is on a whirlwind diplomatic tour that took him to Berlin on Thursday before his meeting with Russia's Sergei Lavrov in Geneva on Friday.

Moscow insists it has no plans to invade but has at the same time laid down a series of demands -- including a ban on Ukraine joining NATO -- in exchange for de-escalation.

Upping the ante, Russia announced new naval drills that will see it deploy to the Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic and Mediterranean "more than 140 warships and support vessels, more than 60 aircraft, 1,000 pieces of military equipment, and about 10,000 servicemen".

Russia already held joint military drills Wednesday with forces of ex-Soviet republic Belarus, which also neighbours Ukraine.

- High price -

Hours before Blinken arrived in Berlin to coordinate the possible response to Russia, Biden sparked controversy as he appeared to indicate that a "minor incursion" might prompt a smaller reaction from NATO allies.

Blinken in Berlin clarified the comments, saying that "if any Russian military forces move across the Ukrainian border and commit new acts of aggression against Ukraine, that will be met with a swift, severe response from the United States and our allies and partners."

Biden also took pains to calm frazzled nerves, saying that any entry of Russian troops into Ukraine will be treated by the West as "an invasion".

"We want to remind the great powers that there are no minor incursions and small nations. Just as there are no minor casualties and little grief from the loss of loved ones," Zelensky wrote on Twitter.

The West's diplomatic machine has been running on full power over recent weeks to defuse tensions, but with positions entrenched on both sides, a series of talks between Western and Russian officials in Geneva, Brussels and Vienna has failed to yield any breakthrough.

On the Russian wish list are measures that would limit military activities in the former Warsaw Pact and ex-Soviet countries that joined NATO after the Cold War.

Ukraine has been fighting Moscow-backed forces in two breakaway eastern regions since 2014, when Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine.

Washington said Thursday it has approved requests from the Baltic nations to ship US-made weapons to Ukraine.

In a speech in Sydney Friday, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will warn Russian President Vladimir Putin against making a strategic blunder and becoming embroiled in a "terrible quagmire" if Russia invades Ukraine, according to prepared remarks.

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