Tensions skyrocket as Russia masses forces near eastern Ukraine

The security situation in eastern Ukraine has hit a new low as Russia concentrated significant military forces near the Ukrainian border and refused to extend a moribund ceasefire in Donbas.

Fiery Russian rhetoric and concerns about the possibility of an all-out war prompted the U.S. Department of Defense on April 1 to restate its commitment “not to leave Ukraine alone” in case of a large-scale invasion by Russia.