Biden: 'Convinced' Putin will invade Ukraine, but diplomacy is still possible

"As of this moment, I am convinced he's made the decision, we have reason to believe that," President Biden said.

President Biden said Friday he is "convinced" that Russian President Vladimir Putin will invade Ukraine.

"As of this moment, I am convinced he's made the decision, we have reason to believe that," Biden said in response to a question about whether Putin had decided to invade Ukraine, CNN reported.

Biden had previously said that he didn't believe Putin had made a decision yet, but noted that he was limited in his insights into the Russian president's thinking, according to the media outlet.

The U.S. president was still hopeful that diplomacy could lead to de-escalation, saying, "Diplomacy is always a possibility."

Biden also said Russia was violating it ceasefire agreement with Ukraine and justifying the violation with a "phony" claim of genocide in the Donbas region.

"Over the last few days, we've seen reports of a major uptick in violations of the ceasefire by Russian-backed fighters attempting to provoke Ukraine in the Donbas," he said. "It defies basic logic to believe the Ukrainians would choose this moment -- with well over 150,000 troops arranged on its borders -- to escalate a year-long conflict."