Russia announced on Tuesday (15) that some military units stationed on the border with Ukraine, whose presence raised fears of an imminent military operation in the neighboring country, had begun to return to their barracks.
“Units from the southern and western military districts, which have already completed their tasks, have started to load equipment for rail and road transport and will begin returning to their barracks today,” Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. by Russian news agencies.
The Kremlin confirmed the beginning of the withdrawal of troops stationed on the border with Ukraine, stressing that it is something “normal” and denouncing, once again, the Western “hysteria” in the face of an alleged invasion of the neighboring country.
“We have always said that after the maneuvers (…) the troops will return to their original barracks. And that is what is happening now. It is the usual procedure,” said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
The announcement, the first sign of relaxation on Moscow’s part, was vague and it is not possible to know the number of soldiers it affects. Russia has deployed more than 100,000 troops on the border with Ukraine since December.
At the same time, Russia maintains military drills in Belarus, Ukraine’s neighbor, which should continue until February 20.
The withdrawal of some troops was met with enthusiasm in Ukraine, where Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that his country, along with its Western allies, “has managed to prevent a new Russian escalation”.
We are already in mid-February and we see that diplomacy continues to work”, said Kuleba.
But the minister stressed that tension remains along the border and that Russia must withdraw the remaining troops.
“We have a rule: don’t believe what you hear, believe what you see. When we see a withdrawal, we will believe in de-escalation,” she said.
The Russian announcement coincides with a visit to Moscow by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is trying to push ahead with diplomatic negotiations and ward off the specter of an invasion and war in eastern Europe.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called on Russia to withdraw its troops from the border. “The situation is particularly dangerous and could get more serious at any time,” she warned in a statement.
– “Unity Day” –
On Monday, Russia had already given a small positive signal when Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov highlighted a “possibility of solving the problems” through diplomatic channels.
The path of dialogue “has not been exhausted, but neither can it last indefinitely”, added Lavrov, with a more paused tone and different from the offensive statements of previous days. The minister also considered some proposals from the United States to be “constructive”.
In Washington, officials warned that the Russian invasion could happen “at any moment”.
The US embassy in Kiev was moved to Lviv, west of the country, on Monday, ignoring the pleas of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who urged governments not to panic.
Some media outlets indicated that the alleged Russian invasion of Ukraine could start on Wednesday. Once again, Zelensky addressed the speculations with a dose of sarcasm.
“We were told that February 16 would be the day of the attack. Let’s turn it into a day of unity,” he said, before asking Ukrainians to display the national flag on the date.
British Foreign Minister Liz Truss said on Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin still had time to avoid war, but stressed that the deadline was “limited”.
“We could be on the brink of a war in Europe that would have serious consequences, not just for the people of Russia and Ukraine, but more generally for the security of Europe,” the British diplomat told Sky News.
– Trenches –
Russia, which annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and has since supported pro-Moscow separatists fighting in eastern Ukraine, denies any military intent.
The country says it feels threatened by NATO’s expansion into eastern Europe and demands “security guarantees” as a commitment that Ukraine never joins the military alliance.
On Tuesday, the Russian parliament asked President Putin to recognize the independence of Ukraine’s breakaway regions.
Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament (Duma), Vyacheslav Volodin, wrote on social media that lawmakers have decided to ask Putin to recognize the two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as “sovereign and independent states”.
At the risk of angering the Kremlin, the Ukrainian president reiterated on Monday that Kiev wants to join NATO to “guarantee its security”.
Possible membership is not yet on the alliance’s agenda, nor is there a timetable set to look into the issue, but Westerners found Russian demands unacceptable. However, they presented the proposal for a dialogue on other issues, such as the limitation of weapons.
In anticipation of possible progress on the diplomatic front, in southeastern Ukraine, close to the front line with the separatists, the population is getting ready with the prospect of an attack.
“We dig trenches into which Ukrainian soldiers can jump and defend themselves more easily,” Mikhailo Anopa, a 15-year-old in a borrowed camouflage uniform, told AFP.
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