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Satellite image shows Russian units on the border with Ukraine
Photo: HANDOUT / AFP
What is Russia planning on the border with Ukraine?
This question has been discussed intensively in international security circles since the beginning of November.
After numerous warnings from various states, NATO has now also spoken out and warned Moscow against military attacks.
General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg called on Moscow on Monday to "refrain from any further provocations or aggressive actions."
"NATO is on the side of Ukraine," said Stoltenberg.
The governments in Berlin and Paris were also extremely concerned.
For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin described the US and NATO military exercises in the Black Sea as "provocative."
The first reports of the troop movements surfaced in early November.
Videos circulated on the Internet showed military trains and truck convoys loaded with tanks and missiles in southwest Russia.
At a joint appearance with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitri Kuleba in Brussels, Stoltenberg spoke of "large and unusual" Russian troops marching on the Ukrainian border.
He announced that he would discuss the situation with the defense ministers of the EU countries in Brussels on Tuesday.
Putin criticizes maneuvers in the Black Sea
Kuleba accused Moscow of wanting to "destabilize" its country.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had already warned Russia last week against an invasion of Ukraine.
A spokesman for the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin said: "We are watching these military activities by Russia with concern." With its European and transatlantic partners, Germany is "in agreement that we must prevent a military escalation."
According to the Kremlin, Putin criticized the fact that the military exercises in the Black Sea had "increased" tensions between Russia and NATO.
The Russian President was apparently referring to recent exercises by US and other NATO military ships in the sea area.
At the weekend, Putin had already described these exercises as a "serious challenge".
USA does not accept Russian allegations
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby rejected the criticism.
"All of our exercises are defensive in nature and are consistent with our alliances and partnership commitments in the region," he said.
The US was also transparent about its military exercises.
Photographs and press releases with details about the maneuvers would be published.
On the other hand, on the Russian side, there was "no transparency with regard to the concentration of soldiers in the western part of the country," criticized Kirby.
The Ukrainian army has been fighting pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country since the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014.
The West accuses Russia of supporting the separatists, which Moscow denies.
jok / AFP