Britain said Wednesday it was ready to deploy 1,000 more troops to deal with any humanitarian crisis linked to Ukraine, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson headed to NATO and Poland.

His trip Thursday coincides with crisis talks in Moscow between British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and her counterpart Sergei Lavrov, as the UK and other US-led allies demand Russia halt its threats against Ukraine.

"As an alliance we must draw lines in the snow and be clear there are principles upon which we will not compromise," Johnson said ahead of his talks in Brussels with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg.

"That includes the security of every NATO ally and the right of every European democracy to aspire to NATO membership," he said, rebuffing Russian demands to rule out Ukraine ever joining the alliance.

From Brussels, Johnson will head to Warsaw to meet Polish President Andrzej Duda, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and members of a UK military detachment in the country, which is set to grow by 350 more troops.

Britain is nearly doubling its NATO deployment in Estonia, from 900 to 1,750, and has a smaller force in Ukraine for training on UK anti-tank missiles.

Johnson will promise "1,000 more British troops will be put at readiness in the UK to support a humanitarian response in the region should it be needed", Downing Street said.

He will also say that Britain is deploying more Royal Air Force jets in southern Europe, and two Royal Navy vessels to the eastern Mediterranean.

Johnson, who visited Kyiv last week in a show of solidarity, added in a message to Moscow: "What we need to see is real diplomacy, not coercive diplomacy."

Truss meanwhile is leading the UK charge on possible sanctions if Russia invades Ukraine, warning of "massive consequences" ahead of her talks Thursday with Lavrov.

The Russian foreign ministry retorted by calling for a "change in the tone" of British rhetoric.

Russian forces around Ukraine now 'north of 100,000': Pentagon
Washington (AFP) Feb 9, 2022 - Russia continues to build up its forces along the border with Ukraine and has now deployed "north of 100,000" troops, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

"We have continued to see even over the last 24 hours additional capabilities flow from elsewhere in Russia to that border with Ukraine and Belarus," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.

"We're not going to get into providing specific numbers but the numbers continue to grow," he said.

Referring to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Kirby said "we maintain that he's north of 100,000 for sure."

"And he continues to add to that capability," he said. "We also see indications that additional battalion tactical groups are on their way.

"And so every day he adds to his options. Every day he adds to his capabilities. Every day he continues to destabilize what is already a very tense situation," Kirby said.

"And he could easily re-stabilize by moving these forces back home, and by committing to a diplomatic path forward."

Kirby's comments came as the White House said President Joe Biden got a debriefing from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron about meetings this week with the leaders of Russia and Ukraine.

Macron met with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week in a bid to find a diplomatic path out of the crisis sparked by Russia's positioning of a large military force on Ukraine's border while demanding that the ex-Soviet republic never be allowed to join the Western NATO alliance.

Both French and Russian officials have made cautiously optimistic statements since then, although the Kremlin has sent mixed signals and continues the build-up of forces on Ukraine's sea and land borders.

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Russian forces around Ukraine now 'north of 100,000': Pentagon
Washington (AFP) Feb 9, 2022
Russia continues to build up its forces along the border with Ukraine and has now deployed "north of 100,000" troops, the Pentagon said Wednesday. "We have continued to see even over the last 24 hours additional capabilities flow from elsewhere in Russia to that border with Ukraine and Belarus," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said. "We're not going to get into providing specific numbers but the numbers continue to grow," he said. Referring to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Kirby said "we main ... read more