BLINKEN: Putin wants to rebuild the Soviet empire

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday said Russian President Vladimir Putin will not stop with Ukraine and has other countries in his sight, reported the U.S. Department of State.

“You don't need intelligence to tell you that that's exactly what President Putin wants,” Blinken told CBS Evening News during an interview with Norah O’Donnell. “He's made clear that he'd like to reconstitute the Soviet empire. Short of that, he'd like to reassert a sphere of influence around neighboring countries that were once part of the Soviet bloc. And short of that, he'd like to make sure that all of these countries are somehow neutral.” 

Blinken claimed that Putin will not get what he wants that easily. “Now, when it comes to a threat beyond Ukraine's borders, there's something very powerful standing in his way,” Blinken added. “That's Article 5 of NATO — an attack on one is an attack on all. It's exactly why we've been reinforcing NATO's eastern flank.”

The U.S. government has said that it will not send troops to Ukraine, which is not a NATO member. However, U.S. troops are being stationed in nearby NATO countries.

“The President’s been very clear that we will defend every inch of NATO territory. I think that’s the most powerful deterrent against President Putin going beyond Ukraine,” Blinken said told ABC World News Tonight’s host David Muir.

“We're concerned for the safety of all of our friends in Ukraine, government officials, and others,” Blinken said. "And we're doing everything we can to stand with them to support them.”

The U.S. government has implemented harsh sanctions against Russia in order to deter further aggression towards Ukraine. Some sanctions were implemented against Russia’s largest financial institutions, stopping the country’s ability to raise money in the international market. Another set of sanctions targets Russia’s ability to import technology. Direct sanctions against Putin himself are still on the table, said Blinken.  

“We've prepared for whatever course that he [Putin] chooses to take,” Blinken added. “We were prepared to engage diplomatically, if we could, to divert him from the aggression that he has pursued. We were also equally prepared now that he’s committed that aggression.”