US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has denied any plans to impose a no-fly zone (NFZ) over Ukraine, arguing that any such attempt could spark an all-out war between the world's two largest nuclear powers.

Russia has censured as “a provocation” a reported Ukrainian request for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile systems from the United States, stressing that considering such supplies would deal a setback to efforts to ease an ongoing crisis between Moscow and the West over Ukraine.