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Inside the White House preparations for a Russian invasion

A ‘Tiger Team’ of administration officials has spent the past several months preparing a clear series of responses, gaming out scenarios from cyberattacks and limited intervention to an invasion of Ukraine

By
and 
February 14, 2022 at 6:00 p.m. EST
A soldier takes part in a joint military exercise between Russia and Belarus, part of the recent buildup that is alarming White House officials about a potential invasion of Ukraine. (Agence France Presse/Getty Images)

As fears grow of potential Russian aggression against Ukraine, a “Tiger Team” led by the White House is quietly gaming out how the United States would respond to a range of jarring scenarios, from a limited show of force to a full-scale, mass-casualty invasion.

The White House team has staged two multi-hour tabletop exercises — including one with Cabinet officials — to bring the scenarios to life and assembled a playbook that outlines an array of swift potential responses, starting with Day One and extending through the first two weeks of an envisioned Russian invasion.