Ukraine: U.S. plan to evacuate diplomats' families 'premature'

The U.S. State Department announced on Sunday it was ordering diplomats' family members to leave Ukraine, as U.S. President Joe Biden weighed options for boosting America's military assets in Eastern Europe to counter a buildup of Russian troops.

"We respect foreign states' rights to provide security to their diplomatic missions; however, we consider this U.S. move as premature and a manifestation of excessive caution," said spokesman for the Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oleg Nikolenko.

The order, which also allowed U.S. diplomats stationed at the embassy in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv to leave voluntarily, was one of the clearest signs yet that American officials are bracing for an aggressive Russian move in the region.

"Military action by Russia could come at any time," the U.S. Embassy said in a statement. Officials "will not be in a position to evacuate American citizens in such a contingency, so U.S. citizens currently present in Ukraine should plan accordingly," it added.

The British Embassy in Ukraine said on Monday that some staff and dependants were being withdrawn from Kyiv in response to "a growing threat from Russia."