{"id":75753,"date":"2022-02-15T15:09:25","date_gmt":"2022-02-15T15:09:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/en.bornomalanews.com\/?p=75753"},"modified":"2022-02-15T15:09:25","modified_gmt":"2022-02-15T15:09:25","slug":"ukraine-russia-tensions-russia-pulls-some-troops-back-from-border","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.bornomalanews.com\/?p=75753","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine-Russia tensions: Russia pulls some troops back from border"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"News Desk:<\/strong> Russia says it is pulling back some of its troops from near Ukraine after a build-up raised fears of an invasion.<\/p>\n

The defence ministry said that large-scale drills continued but that some units were returning to their bases.<\/p>\n

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Ukraine warned to wait to see proof of the pull-out, saying “when we see the withdrawal, then we'll believe the de-escalation”.<\/p>\n

More than 100,000 Russian troops have massed at Ukraine's border. Russia has always denied it is planning an attack.<\/p>\n

The build-up has brought increasingly grave warnings, with the US saying an invasion could come at any time.<\/p>\n

Russia has been seeking guarantees that Ukraine will not be allowed to join Nato, something the security bloc has rejected.<\/p>\n

In another development, the Russian parliament has voted in favour of asking President Vladimir Putin to recognise the two self-declared republics of Luhansk and Donetsk in Eastern Ukraine as independent.<\/p>\n

Russia has granted citizenship to at least 720,000 people in the two regions, the scene of an insurgency that began in 2014.<\/p>\n

If Mr Putin were to recognise the two breakaway regions it would violate peace agreements.<\/p>\n

In its statement, Russia's defence ministry said it was withdrawing some of the troops conducting exercises in military districts bordering Ukraine.<\/p>\n

“A number of combat training exercises, including drills, have been conducted as planned,” defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.<\/p>\n

Some exercises are continuing, such as a large joint Russia-Belarus drill, due to end on 20 February.<\/p>\n

A British government source said it was waiting to see the scale of the withdrawal, saying it would have to make a difference to the ability to invade to be meaningful.<\/p>\n

But the announcement was enough for both Ukraine and Russia to claim victory in the stand-off.<\/p>\n

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dymytro Kuleba said “we have managed together with our partners to deter Russia from any further escalation”.<\/p>\n

A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said the day “will go into history as the day western war propaganda failed. They have been disgraced and destroyed without a single shot being fired.”<\/p>\n

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz is in Moscow for talks with President Putin as part of diplomatic efforts aimed at warding off a potential crisis.<\/p>\n

Mr Scholz has faced criticism for his response to the tensions.<\/p>\n

He has refused to commit publicly to scrapping the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline connecting Russia and Germany in the event of Russian aggression against Ukraine, saying only that all sanctions options remain on the table.<\/p>\n

This is in contrast to US President Joe Biden, who has said the scheme would be halted if Russia invades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

News Desk: Russia says it is pulling back some of its troops from near Ukraine after a build-up raised fears of an invasion. The defence ministry said that large-scale drills continued but that some units were returning to their bases. Ukraine warned to wait to see proof of the pull-out, saying “when we see the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":75754,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n