(RightWing.org) – The situation on the ground in Ukraine appeared to catch Russian intelligence services and President Vladimir Putin by surprise. Russia recently announced its intention to reduce some of its military operations in the war-torn country.
On Tuesday, March 29, Russia’s defense ministry said it would “reduce military activity” in the region surrounding Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv and nearby Chernihiv to “increase mutual trust” between the two nations.
BREAKING: Russia said today that it would drastically scale back military operations near Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv.
The announcement came after several hours of peace talks in Istanbul. https://t.co/Ywmcy643P7
— Axios (@axios) March 29, 2022
Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin announced the reduction shortly after he departed diplomatic talks in Instanbul, Turkey, aimed at negotiating peace between Russia and Ukraine. Russian state media quoted Fomin stating the Defense Ministry decided to “create the necessary conditions for further [peace] negotiations.”
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby confirmed US military officials had observed “some movement” by a few Russian units away from Kyiv during a press conference conducted a few hours after the announcement.
However, Kirby noted the Pentagon believes the reduction of forces serves more as a “repositioning [and] not a real withdrawal.” According to Kirby, a real commitment to peace in the region would require a complete withdrawal of all Russian military forces from Ukraine.
NEWS: Defense Official Says Real Withdrawal Is Complete Withdrawal From Ukraine https://t.co/3P3s1E2lam
— Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) March 29, 2022
“The war could end today if Mr. Putin did the right thing and… [withdrew] all his forces… and respected Ukrainian sovereignty,” Kirby stated.
Do you think the Russians will eventually leave Ukraine, or will they ultimately defeat its defense forces?
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