Thread by @jseldin

Happening now: @SecDef Lloyd Austin briefs reporters following the NATO Defense Ministerial in #Brussels

"#Russia continues building up their military presence along #Ukraine’s borders including in #Crimea, #Belarus, and in the #BlackSea" per @SecDef

"In many ways, this brings Russian troops right up to @NATO’s doorstep"

"As President Biden said a couple days ago, we will if we must defend every inch of @NATO territory" per @SecDef

"There is no reason, of course, that it should ever come to this. Just like there is no reason for #Russia to again invade #Ukraine"

"We don't see that" per @SecDef "Quite the contrary, we see them add to the more than 150,000 troops they already have arrayed along that border...We even see them stocking up their blood supplies"

"I know firsthand that you don’t do these sorts of things for no reason & you certainly don’t do them if you’re getting ready to pack up and go home" per @SecDef on ongoing #Russia military build-up along #Ukraine

"We believe there is still time and space for diplomacy to work, & we are in lockstep with our allies & partners toward that end" per @SecDef

"A peaceful outcome that respects #Ukraine’s sovereignty & territorial integrity represents the best outcome for Ukraine, to be sure, but also for #Russia & for the Russian people" per @SecDef

If #Russia's Vladimir Putin chooses war, "It will be Mr. Putin who will bear the responsibility for the suffering and the immense sacrifice that ensues" per @SecDef

"Mr. Putin says he doesn’t want a strong @NATO on his western flank. He’s getting exactly that" per @SecDef

"I can honestly say that I have ever seen the Alliance more relevant, more united or more resolute than I do right now"

NEW: @SecDef says #Bulgaria has agreed to host a @USArmy Stryker company for joint training - troops to depart for Bulgaria in coming days

"There is nothing inevitable about this looming conflict. It can still be averted" per @SecDef on #Russia - #Ukraine

Reports of shelling in #Donbas "certainly troubling" per @SecDef "We've said for some time that the #Russia|ns might do something like this in order to justify a military conflict, so we'll be watching very closely"

"I don't see this as a competition of narratives. We've been very transparent about everything we've seen so far" per @SecDef, asked about skepticism in #Germany of US intelligence

"The solution is to continue to be transparent...explain what we're seeing"

#Cyber attack on #Ukraine - intel agencies still assessing who is responsible, per @SecDef, adding this type of thing is right out of #Russia's playbook

Cautions "at this point...@NATO elements have not been attacked"