Tensions at the Russia-Ukraine border continue to run high. And U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that these tensions could escalate into a crisis in the coming days. Embassy staff and diplomats from several countries have begun evacuating from their posts in Ukraine, and US officials and other NATO allies are urging citizens to leave the country.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials are trying to tamp down the panic calling the evacuations “needlessly alarmist.”

The Takeaway gets an update on these growing tensions from Alex Ward, a national security reporter at Politico.

Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures speaking during a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz following their talks in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022. (Sergey Guneev/AP Photo)