Ukraine crisis: "Everything prepared for attack" - USA skeptical about troop withdrawal

Created: 2022-02-15Updated: 2022-02-15, 21:07

By: Sandra Kathe, Lukas Zigo

Although Russia has announced a first partial withdrawal, the situation on the border with Ukraine remains tense.

Politicians are demanding an extensive troop withdrawal.

• The situation on the border with Ukraine* remains tense after reports of a possible planned attack by Russia*.

• Because they fear an imminent attack on the country, the USA* have moved their embassy from Kiev to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.

• Meanwhile, the Russian government under Vladimir Putin* is announcing the first measures to withdraw troops.

+++ 8:55 p.m .:

France has warned Russia against recognizing the pro-Russian Ukrainian provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent.

This would be "a kind of unarmed attack," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said at a parliamentary hearing.

Russia's lower house has asked President Vladimir Putin to declare the provinces independent.

"Kiev does not comply with the Minsk agreement," said Duma President Vyacheslav Volodin, referring to the agreement to pacify eastern Ukraine, which was named after the Belarusian capital.

"Our citizens and comrades living in Donbass need our help and support," he added, referring to the pro-Russian separatist-held region in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine crisis: "Ready for action at any time" - widespread skepticism after a surprising turnaround in Russia

+++ 18:03:

Russia surprisingly announced in the Ukraine crisis that it would withdraw troops from the country's border.

According to the US representative at the United Nations, the United States has not yet received any evidence of a withdrawal of Russian troops from the regions near Ukraine.

However, such a move would be welcome, according to a statement by Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

Meanwhile, according to his ministry, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov rejected "aggressive rhetoric" as unacceptable in a phone call with his US colleague Antony Blinken.

Lavrov also called for a pragmatic dialogue on security issues, it said in a statement.

+++ 4.30 p.m .:

Numerous representatives of top politics see a positive development in the signals from Moscow in the direction of a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg sees the development as a reason for "cautious optimism" for the first time.

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz also described the announced partial withdrawal of Russian troops from the Ukrainian border with Ukraine as a "good sign".

Nevertheless, there is still no sign of de-escalation in the troop movements on the border with Ukraine, emphasized the NATO Secretary General.

With a view to the more than 100,000 soldiers that Russia, according to Western sources, has massed on the border with Ukraine, Stoltenberg called for “an extensive troop withdrawal”.

Moscow has "prepared everything for a new attack".

The Kremlin had previously spoken of a planned partial withdrawal of troops.

Ukraine crisis: Positive signals from Russia do not yet mean the all-clear

Stoltenberg stressed that NATO was still ready to negotiate with Russia.

This is also illustrated by Chancellor Scholz's visit to Moscow.

At a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday in Moscow, he emphasized that security issues in Europe could only be clarified with and not "against Moscow".

The diplomatic opportunities in the Ukraine crisis are "far from exhausted," said Scholz.

The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Tuesday that some units that had taken part in military exercises would return to their bases.

© video still image/dpa

The US ambassador to NATO, Julianne Smith, was much more reserved.

The United States had "taken note of" the Russian statements about a troop withdrawal, Smith said.

"We have to check whether this is true." She referred to similar Russian statements in December, which ultimately turned out to be false.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson* also warned against drawing hasty conclusions from the signals from Moscow.

"We see that Russia is open to talks," Johnson told Sky News on Tuesday.

"On the other hand, the intelligence information we are receiving today is still not encouraging." Accordingly, the Russian armed forces are "almost always ready for action."

To this end, the Russian military set up field hospitals in Belarus near the Ukrainian border, which according to Johnson's assessment "can only be understood as preparation for an invasion".

Surprising turnaround in the Ukraine crisis: Russia suddenly wants talks

+++ 2.55 p.m .:

In the midst of heavy tensions in the Ukraine conflict, according to dpa reports, Russia is ready for new talks with the West.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in Moscow on Tuesday (February 15, 2022) that the dialogue with the USA and NATO on the security guarantees demanded by Russia would be continued.

It is about not stationing medium-range missiles and "reducing military risks," said Lavrov.

Meanwhile, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) offered Moscow a new dialogue.

Poland's Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau flew to the Russian capital.

Poland currently chairs the OSCE.

The situation in Ukraine remains extremely tense and threatens to escalate seriously, said Rau.

"It is in this spirit that we have proposed an initiative for a new dialogue on European security."

Lavrov called the proposal "interesting".

"We are ready for very close cooperation with the OSCE Chairmanship." Lavrov asked his OSCE colleagues to write a response to the question of how security in one country cannot be guaranteed at the expense of another.

At the moment, however, the dialogue with the USA and NATO is the most important thing for Russia.

"Without progress with the USA and NATO, talks in Vienna will not bring any progress."

Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, attends a meeting with the President of Russia.

© Alexei Nikolsky/dpa

Ukraine crisis: USA close embassy and destroy files – compatriots should leave the country immediately

Update from Tuesday, February 15th, 2022, 1:14 p.m .:

After a corresponding warning for Ukraine, US authorities have now also called on their compatriots in Belarus to leave the country as soon as possible.

The background to the travel warning, which was issued on Monday, was a troop elevator on the border between Russia's neighboring country and Ukraine.

This is reported by the Russian news portal Moscow Times, which is critical of the government.

The travel warning states: "Due to increasing extraordinary activities by the Russian military on the border with Ukraine, US citizens living in Belarus or planning a trip to the country are cautioned that the situation is unpredictable and that there are tensions in the country can come from the region”.

According to the authorities, relatives of employees of the Minsk embassy had already been called on to leave the country last month.

The US embassy in Kiev is no longer staffed for the time being, and the diplomatic mission has moved to Lviv.

© Aris Messinis/AFP

Ukraine crisis: US embassy moves from the capital Kiev to western Ukraine

First report from Tuesday, February 15th, 2022, 11:57 a.m.:

Kiev – Out of concern about a Russian attack on Ukraine later this week, the USA has moved its diplomatic representation in Ukraine from the capital Kiev to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, not far from the border with Poland .

The embassy in Kiev will be “temporarily” closed, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday (February 14, 2022).

Meanwhile, on Tuesday (February 15, 2022), Russia announced the withdrawal of the first troops from the south and west of the country.

According to State Department spokesman Ned Price, the decision to temporarily move the embassy was "absolutely necessary," as quoted by CNN Blinken's spokesman.

This assessment follows a "clear possibility, perhaps more realistic than ever, that there will be military action by the Russian side".

For months, the USA has been observing an unprovoked rearmament by Russia along the border with Ukraine.

In this situation, the city of Lviv offers a "degree of protection that other cities in Ukraine do not offer".

Concerns about Russian attack: US embassy in Ukraine destroys documents

The embassy's move was planned down to the smallest detail, Price said, noting that security-related documents and equipment were handled with the utmost care.

According to CNN, Price did not give details of what he meant by that.

According to CNN, however, another person from ministry circles also confirmed that secret documents had been destroyed.

The news portal Thehill.com, which specializes in US politics, reports that the destruction of documents had already been discussed on Saturday (February 12, 2022).

The source for this is a transcript of a phone call between a deputy secretary of state at the State Department and the member of the House of Representatives Gregory Meeks, which is available to the news portal.

Accordingly, entry and travel documents containing security-related information were also destroyed.

Ukraine has been preparing for a possible attack by Russian troops for weeks.

Now Russia has initially announced a partial withdrawal.

(Archive photo) © Sergei Supinsky/AFP

US State Department wants to continue de-escalation between Russia and Ukraine

In front of the embassy in Kiev, a Ukrainian security guard confirmed to the AFP news agency that all US representatives had left the building, which is now closed.

A US flag was not to be seen.

The United States had recently significantly reduced the number of its employees in the embassy in Kiev.

In Lviv, Ukraine wants to continue to be approachable with a diplomatic "core team" for the government of Ukraine, Price told CNN.

US Secretary of State Blinken also emphasized that the departure from Kiev was not intended to abandon Ukraine: "We are also continuing our intensive diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the crisis." Subvert states for Ukraine.

"Our commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity is unshakable." In addition to the USA, other Western countries such as France*, Great Britain* and Germany are also trying to contribute to the de-escalation of the Ukraine conflict.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz* also traveled to Ukraine and Russia this week.

Ukraine crisis: Russia announces partial troop withdrawal

Meanwhile, Russia on Tuesday announced troop withdrawals, which the Russian Defense Ministry said should begin the same day.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had previously announced that some exercises were nearing completion.

It was initially unclear how many soldiers were involved.

However, other maneuvers continued unaffected by the Russian announcement, the agency report said.

For example, Russia is continuing a "complex of large-scale measures for the operational training of troops and armed forces".

In the meantime, more than 30 Russian warships of different classes also held another practice maneuver using artillery in the Black Sea.

Nevertheless, the Russian announcement is seen as a possible step towards relaxation.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on the social network Telegram: "February 15, 2022 will go down in history as the day when Western war propaganda failed." The West was embarrassed.

(ska/lz with AFP/dpa)