| War is escalating in Ukraine as Russia ramps up its bombardment to try to capture Ukrainian cities. (The big ones remain in Ukrainian hands, to the surprise of many). Russia and Ukraine are also holding talks. And President Biden and the world say they're united in punishing Russia economically for this. Let's answer a few common reader questions on Ukraine, then talk about some other big news in U.S. politics right now. Are we at risk of nuclear war? This question came up because over the weekend, as the world tried to isolate Russia financially, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his nuclear forces on a version of high alert. The answer is: We don't know. In some sense, we always are facing such a threat. Russia keeps many of its missiles on alert anyway, as does the United States, the Associated Press reported. Also, the threat Putin made sounds a lot like what leaders in North Korea or Pakistan routinely say, writes Caitlin Talmadge, a security professor at Georgetown University. But the chance for miscommunication between two of the world's biggest nuclear superpowers is higher than ever, Talmadge says: "In the fog of war, countries may shoot first and ask questions later." Throw in a war that Putin really wants to win, and his general unpredictability, and the consensus is the United States needs to be very careful about what it does next.  Armed Ukrainians in Kyiv on Monday. (Heidi Levine for The Washington Post) | How could the U.S. protect Ukraine? A number of you have been asking whether there's anything that could force the United States to get involved in the fighting in Ukraine and protect Ukrainians. The answer is no, unless the war spreads to NATO member countries. Biden said he absolutely will not send U.S. troops to fight against Russians. "That's a world war when Americans and Russia start shooting at one another," he said. Republicans agree with him on this. Some of you asked: What about the Budapest Memorandum? That's a 1994 agreement that had Ukraine give up its nuclear weapons (it had a lot after the Soviet Union dissolved) in exchange for security assistance from the United States and Russia. But U.S. officials have said security assistance doesn't explicitly mean sending troops to defend the country, as The Post's Aaron Blake notes. Biden could argue he's complying with the agreement by sending weapons to Ukraine. There's a huge "but" to all this. If the fighting spreads to nearby NATO countries, then the United States may decide it's legally required to respond, because NATO's Article 5 says an attack on one member requires a response from all. (Ukraine is not part of NATO, which is why the world is largely watching Russia's attack instead of getting directly involved.) Why some Jan. 6 rioters are getting such lenient sentences  Adam Johnson, a stay-at-home dad of five from Florida, will go to jail for 75 days for his role in the riot. (Win McNamee/Getty Images) | This was a reader question. Two reasons: Federal prosecutors just don't have time to drum up big charges against some 700 people, and because the tougher sentences may be coming later. To date, most people have been charged with misdemeanors that carry little jail time. Prosecutors are going after the "low-hanging fruit" first, said Barbara McQuade, a former U.S. prosecutor. That means the guy who took House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's lectern around the Capitol got 75 days in jail. But she said it also means prosecutors are clearing the decks so they can try to jail others facing more-serious charges. There are 375 defendants facing federal felony charges, such as the head of the Oath Keepers, charged with seditious conspiracy. There's actually a Jan. 6 trial coming up soon It's the first trial of Jan. 6, and jury selection started today. The defendant: Guy Wesley Reffitt, a purported Texas recruiter for the right-wing, anti-government Three Percenters, who was allegedly deep in the fighting that day. He demanded to have a trial. The charges: He's charged with quite a few things in relation to the Capitol riot, The Post's Spencer S. Hsu reports: "obstructing an official proceeding of Congress; trespassing at the Capitol while carrying a holstered semiautomatic handgun; interfering with police in a riot; and witness tampering after prosecutors say he threatened his teenage children not to turn him in to authorities." The stakes: Hsu reports that if the trial goes well for the government, it could prompt other defendants to plead guilty to serious charges. If it goes poorly for the government, it could further divide and radicalize the country, and potentially make prosecuting Jan. 6 defendants even more difficult than it already is. | 
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