Vladimir Putin says fighting between Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces along the border 'looks like genocide', ramping up tensions amid fears he will invade.
Putin, answering a question about threats against Russians living overseas, denounced what he called 'Russophobia' saying it is a 'first step towards genocide'.
He then pointed to the war simmering in Ukraine's Donbass region, on Russia's border, saying: 'You and I know what is happening... It certainly looks like genocide.'
Though Putin has used similar words before, they will cause fresh alarm amid a huge Russian troop build-up on Ukraine's border.
Russian state propaganda has, in the past, used 'threats' to Russians living overseas as pretext for invasion - including during the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Putin made the remark on Thursday as Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries were filmed being taken to the frontlines, further bolstering his forces in the region.
It came ahead of a Russian demand on Friday that NATO rescind a 2008 commitment to Ukraine and Georgia that they would one day become members.
Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries are seen at a railway yard near Voronezh, close to the Ukrainian border, as Putin continues to build up his forces in the region
More footage captured Russian artillery pieces and support vehicles sitting close to the Ukrainian border, as Putin continues massing his forces
A Russian soldier fires his weapon during training exercises at a military base in Rostov-on-Don, close to the Ukrainian border, on Friday
Russian troops disembark from an armoured personnel carrier during drills taking pace in Rostov-on-Don, on the Russian side of the border, on Friday
Washington has been warning for weeks that Russia appears to be gearing up to invade Ukraine with a force of up to 175,000 men
Videos posted on TikTok and analysed by experts at Conflict Intelligence Team identified the vehicles as BUK-M1 missile launchers of the 49th zenite rocket brigade division being sent to Voronezh.
More footage showed support vehicles along with tanks and artillery sitting in what analysts said was Maslovka railway yard in Russia, close to the Ukrainian border.
The BUK-M1 is the same weapon system that shot down passenger flight MH-17 in the region in 2014, after troops mistook it for a Ukrainian transport.
More footage shows support vehicles for what analysts said was a battalion-sized force of M1 launchers, along with T-80U tanks and Msta-S artillery units.
The video appears to have been recorded on December 6, according to the train driver's console panel, the same day that Washington warned Putin will be ready to invade with a force 175,000-strong within weeks.
Ukraine's Donbass region, where fighting with Russian separatists is taking place, is majority-Ukrainian but contains significant Russian minorities with Russian being the dominant language in many southern and eastern districts.
Donetsk and Luhansk, the two regions which collectively make up the Donbass, are 38 per cent and 39 per ethnically Russian, respectively.
Many observers fear that Putin could invade on the pretext of protecting those people from the 'threat' of genocide.
The United States and its allies have for weeks accused Russia of planning an invasion of Ukraine with the apparent goal of annexing territory.
Biden earlier this week spoke with Putin via video link and warned Russia of crippling sanctions and US boots on the ground if he took military action against Ukraine.
Russia today spelt out demands in its fullest statement yet on the security guarantees that Putin says he wants to obtain from the United States and its allies.
It called on NATO to promise not to deploy weapons in countries bordering Russia that could threaten its security.
Putin has made similar remarks in the past, but they will ring alarm bells in light of the Russian troop build-up amid fears he could use the 'threat' as a pretext to invade
Putin made the remark as Biden (left) shared a phone call with Ukrainian president Zelensky (right), assuring him of 'strong' US support in the event of a Russian attack
The US President then had a call with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, who said he gave 'strong' backing and vowed support in the event of a Russian attack.
Zelensky issued a statement late Thursday, thanking Biden for his support following a phone call that he said lasted an hour and a half.
The White House said Biden 'reaffirmed the United States' unwavering commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.'
Biden also placed a separate call to the leaders of NATO members Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia - eastern European nations which fear the ramifications of a Russian attack.
They 'discussed Russia's destabilizing military buildup along Ukraine's border and the need for a united, ready, and resolute NATO stance for the collective defense of allies,' the White House said.
Biden had already spent two hours talking to President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, warning him that if Russian troops now massed next to Ukraine launch a major attack, Moscow would then face US economic sanctions 'like none he's ever seen.'
But the White House stressed that Biden was also pushing for reinvigorated diplomacy, including the stalled peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.
'Within the next couple days, we're obviously going to continue talking with our European partners, we're going to continue talking with our Russian partners and finding a way forward,' a senior administration official told reporters.
Western and Ukrainian officials say they fear Russia - which already seized Ukraine's entire Crimea region in 2014 and also backed a separatist rebellion in the east - is preparing an even larger scale invasion.
Smoke grenades are set off as Russian troops take part in training exercises on the Russian side of the border, close to Ukraine, on Friday
Washington has been warning that Russian will be ready to invade Ukraine in the coming weeks with a force of 1750,000 (pictured, Russian troops training in Rostov-on-Don today)
Zelensky (pictured on the frontlines this week) has been pushing for Ukraine to be admitted to NATO, something that Putin has declared a Russian 'red line'
Russia says it has deployed troops, estimated to number about 100,000, on the border only out of fear that the former Soviet republic is becoming an outpost of the NATO alliance.
Ukraine is nowhere near to entering NATO, although Washington insists that Russia should not have a veto on Kiev's ambitions.
Beyond the battlefields of eastern Ukraine, however, the dispute has turned into a much broader struggle over the path for eastern Europe, where for decades the Soviet Union had total dominance but most countries now are part of Western institutions.
At the same time, neither the United States nor any European powers want open war with Russia over Ukraine, and Biden appears to be seeking a return to negotiations.
Zelensky said that he and Biden 'discussed possible formats for resolving the conflict' in eastern Ukraine, where the Russian-backed separatists have a self-declared state.
The senior US official said 'we are of course prepared to talk to the Russians about this whole set of issues.'
But the official bristled at media reports that Biden had pressured Zelensky into accepting concessions to Russia.
'There very clearly were not' concessions being discussed, the official said, adding that Biden 'stood by our principles.'
Biden is closely coordinating with major European powers, reaching out to the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy both before and after his session with Putin on Tuesday.
A camp containing five battalions of Russian troops is pictured near Yelna, 150 miles from Ukraine's border, within the last month as US intelligence warns Putin now has 50 battalions camped out on Europe's doorstep
Another view of the newly-built Russian military camp near Yelna, as US intelligence claims that Putin will be ready to invade Ukraine with an army of 175,000 men within weeks
Russian tanks, artillery pieces and support vehicles are seen at a newly-built camp at Novoozerne, in Crimea, which is located around 80 miles from the Ukrainian border
US options for assisting Ukraine are limited, as the country is not in NATO and direct intervention would mean almost certain clashes with Russia.
Still, the United States helps train Ukrainian forces and has committed more than $2.5 billion to bolster a military that crumpled in the face of the Russian assault back in 2014.
Biden said that deliveries of that kind of 'defensive capability' would be boosted if the conflict escalates.
The US president says the possibility of sending American troops into Ukraine's fight is 'not on the table.' But when it comes to the nine eastern flank NATO countries, Biden is promising the opposite.
'We would probably be required to reinforce our presence in NATO countries to reassure particularly those in the eastern front,' he said this week.
Biden and European leaders are also talking up their willingness to impose harsh economic penalties on Moscow over any further Russian attack.
Among them, the new German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, warned of 'consequences' for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a controversial Russian project to deliver natural gas to Germany.
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