This handout satellite image released by Maxar Technologies shows a view of armoured units and support equipment amid the presence of a large ground forces deployment on the northern edge of the town of Yelnya, Smolensk Oblast, Russia. The Pentagon is monitoring the Ukraine region closely amid reports of a new build-up of Russian troops on the country's border
* SAS and Parachute Regiment units are preparing to deploy to support Ukraine
* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy condemned Russian troop build-up
* 'I hope the whole world can now clearly see who really wants peace,' he said
* It comes amid rising tensions in Europe around the Belarus migrant crisis
* Foreign Secretary Liz Truss urged Russia's President Vladimir Putin to intervene in the 'shameful manufactured crisis' between Belarus and Poland
* But Russia has condemned increased NATO reconnaissance activity around the Black Sea, saying it has tracked multiple spy planes and warships in the region
A task force of up to 600 UK troops is on standby to deploy in Ukraine amid fears that Russian troops massing near the border are planning an invasion.
Units from the SAS and Parachute Regiment are preparing for an urgent deployment after defence chiefs and the head of MI6 advised Downing Street that Russian troop movement represents a clear and present danger to Ukraine and the West.
'The high readiness element of the brigade was told it may need to deploy at very short notice,' a source told the Mirror.
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Update #1: Ukraine says Russia has nearly 100,000 troops near its border (Reuters)
Update #2: Russia Is Massing Troops on the Ukrainian and Polish Borders and the US Is Unsure What This Means (SOFEP)
WNU editor: Ukraine is using this to justify its own buildup .... Ukraine Plans To Speed Construction Of Berdyansk Base Amid Tensions With Russia (RFE).