Washington appears fully aware it has poked the Russian bear, after President Biden greenlighted Ukraine striking Russian territory with long-range missiles.

US officials have warned Wednesday that "potential significant air attack" on Kiev is likely coming, and have announced the closure of the US Embassy in the capital "out of an abundance of caution". This follows immediately on the heels of Ukrainian forces having struck an arms depot inside Russia with U.S.-supplied weapons, specifically the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), on Tuesday.

"Embassy employees are being instructed to shelter in place," a new alert on the embassy website said. "The U.S. Embassy recommends U.S. citizens be prepared to immediately shelter in the event an air alert is announced."

Embassy diplomats and all staff are being asked to observe the following precautions:

The embassy closure is also happening the day after Putin signed a decree which updates and expands Russia's nuclear doctrine, which effectively lowers the threshold for nuclear weapons use. "As we said earlier this month, we were not surprised by Russia’s announcement that it would update its nuclear doctrine; Russia had been signaling its intent to update its doctrine for several weeks," the White House National Security Council responded in a statement.

Other Western embassies have also shuttered their operations amid air raid warnings in Kiev and other regions, including Italy, Spain, and Greece.

Al Jazeera notes that "Germany’s embassy in Kyiv remains open in a limited capacity and can still be contacted by German nationals who are in the country, a German Foreign Ministry official has said."

"We are in constant contact with our colleagues on the ground so that we can take appropriate measures if the situation changes," the official said.

Ukraine's military has since said that warnings of a large-scale missile attack from Moscow forces are likely a “psychological operation” carried out by Russia, precisely in order to instill fear and cause further embassy closures. According to the military statement:

It said Russia is conducting a “psychological attack against Ukraine”, warning of fake messages circulating on social media on alleged increased missile threats that it said were part of a “psychological operation”.

It appears Russia may bomb the US embassy in Kyiv today. The state dept response will be to provide additional arms, funding and longer range missile strikes inside of Russia. This is the escalatory trap we've all been warning about. Congress needs to hear from us: No more funds. https://t.co/Z6foXbc6EW

— Clint Russell (@LibertyLockPod) November 20, 2024

With merely two months to go until Trump is sworn into office, many Republicans have blasted the Biden administration and his national security officials for risking World War 3, and at least assuring major escalation, by at the last minute greenlighting long-range strikes on Russia--even knowing full well the Trump administration plans to pursue peace negotiations.