U.S says over 130,000 Russian troops now staged outside Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urges calm

Ukraine's President urged calm amid intensified warnings of a , saying he had yet to see convincing evidence of that, even as the U.S. reported Sunday that Moscow positioned more of its troops closer to Ukraine's borders and some airlines canceled or diverted flights to the capital of Kyiv.

President Joe Biden spoke for about 50 minutes Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and renewed promises of what the West says will be tough against Moscow and a NATO buildup in the event of “any further Russian aggression” against Ukraine, the White House said. They agreed to pursue both deterrence and diplomacy in the crisis, it added.

The U.S. updated its estimate for how many Russian forces were now staged near Ukraine's borders to more than 130,000, up from the 100,000 the U.S. has cited publicly in previous weeks. A U.S. official gave the estimate, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the administration's conclusion.