Mobilization instead of partial deduction
US government: Russia increases troops
2/17/2022 2:24 am
On Tuesday, the Kremlin circulated videos of Russian troops withdrawing from the Ukrainian border. The military exercises there are said to have been completed. Ukraine does not trust peace – and has no reason to be, the US government confirms. Russia is increasing its troops and is only looking for an excuse for the attack.
The US government classifies the partial withdrawal of Russian troops announced by Moscow to ease the Ukraine conflict as false information and instead assumes that the military presence will continue to expand. In the “past few days” Russia had brought around 7,000 additional soldiers near the Ukrainian border, “and some of them only arrived today,” said a senior White House official on Wednesday evening (local time).
Findings from the US government meanwhile show that Russia’s announcement of a partial withdrawal was “wrong”. In a briefing for journalists in Washington, the official said Russia says it is open to a diplomatic solution to the conflict. “But all the evidence we have now is that they are only offering talks and making claims of de-escalation while secretly mobilizing for war,” said the official, who must not be named.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, had previously said on television that no withdrawal of Russian troops near the borders had been detected so far. “We’re seeing some rotations, but I wouldn’t call that a withdrawal of troops from the Russian Federation,” he said on Wednesday. It’s still too early to be happy.
First false information, then invasion?
The US administration official said he was also providing information that Russia could “at any time” stage or fabricate events to create an “excuse” for an attack on Ukraine. One possibility is a provocation in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbass. There may also be an increase in Russian misinformation, including baseless claims that the US and Ukraine are using “biological or chemical weapons.” It is unclear what reason Russia will ultimately use. “We hope the world is ready for this,” the official said. “No one should take these claims at face value,” he said.
Moscow announced on Tuesday that it would withdraw some of its troops from the Ukrainian border. US President Biden then warned of a possible Russian invasion of the neighboring country. There are now “more than 150,000” Russian soldiers on the Russian-Ukrainian border. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg made a similar statement on Wednesday. So far he sees no signs of a Russian troop withdrawal. “On the contrary, Russia appears to be expanding its military presence.”
The US State Department had already accused Russia of wanting to create a pretext for an invasion of the neighboring country with unfounded allegations of “genocide” in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbass. Russian media recently published articles and photos on alleged mass graves in the region controlled by pro-Russian separatists. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke of a “genocide” in this context. “These are false narratives that Russia is developing to use as a pretext for military action against Ukraine,” said US State Department spokesman Ned Price. “These claims are not based on truth.”
Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden again called on Russia to de-escalate. Both agreed in a telephone call that “a significant withdrawal of Russian troops” from the Ukrainian border “so far has not been observed,” said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit on Wednesday evening. The risk of “further Russian military aggression against Ukraine” persists. Russia must “take real steps towards de-escalation”.