First Thing: Europe ‘closer to war’ than at any point in 70 years

Ukrainian president urges Joe Biden to visit Kyiv in coming days. Plus, lessons for lifelong lovers

Good morning.

Europe is closer to war than at any point over the past 70 years, a UK government minister has warned, as Russian troops amass on the borders of Ukraine and western leaders warn that an invasion could take place early this week.

Is Joe Biden involved in the last minute negotiations? Yes but yesterday, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, urged Joe Biden to visit Kyiv in the coming days" in a show of moral support. However, the White House has made no mention of the invitation so it's unclear if Biden intends to go.

Is time running out to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis? US intelligence over the weekend claimed that Russia had accelerated plans for an invasion and could move troops across the border as soon as Wednesday, before the end of the Winter Olympics on 20 February.

What about the protests in Ottawa? Small-scale protests there swelled to what police said were 4,000 demonstrators. The city has seen that on past weekends, and loud music played as people milled about downtown where anti-vaccine demonstrators have been encamped since late January.