On Wednesday, Washington requested clarification from Moscow regarding "unusual" movements of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine, warning Russia against repeating the "grave mistake" it made in 2014, which ignited a war in eastern Ukraine. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby stated, "We urge Russia to clarify its intentions" concerning the "unusual military activity near the Ukrainian border," emphasizing that what raises suspicion about these Russian military movements is their "magnitude" and "scope."
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in Washington, said, "We do not have clarity regarding Moscow's intentions, but we know its strategy." He added, "We are concerned that Russia may commit a grave mistake by trying to repeat what it did in 2014 when it massed troops along the border and entered sovereign Ukrainian territory, falsely claiming provocation."
Blinken explained that the strategy previously employed by the Russians in Ukraine was "to carry out provocations to implement what they planned from the beginning." He warned that "if there are provocations today, they come from Russia, with these troop movements we see along the Ukrainian border."
He emphasized that the United States is closely monitoring these military movements "in consultation with our allies," noting the "remarkable restraint" shown by Kyiv in this regard. The U.S. Secretary reiterated the steadfast support of the United States for "Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity."
The Pentagon also urged Moscow to "respect the Minsk agreements," which specifically call for disarmament along the Russian-Ukrainian border. U.S. media reported at the end of October about troop movements near the Ukrainian border, to which the Pentagon merely commented at the time that it was "monitoring the border closely," without providing further details.
During the joint press conference with Blinken, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister welcomed this U.S. support, stating that "the best way to deter Russian aggression" is "to show the Kremlin clearly that Ukraine is strong and that it also has strong allies who will not leave it alone in facing Moscow's increasingly aggressive behavior."
Kyiv denied any unusual Russian military movements at the beginning of November. On that occasion, the Ukrainian army confirmed that the reported Russian military movements were "troop transfers after exercises," framing the rumors of Russian army reinforcements near the Ukrainian border as part of a potential psychological "war" against Kyiv.
Since 2014, the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine has witnessed a war between government forces and Russian-backed separatists, resulting in over 13,000 deaths. After a truce was reached in the latter half of 2020, sporadic clashes resumed at the beginning of the year between Kyiv forces and separatists, whom Russia is accused of supporting militarily and financially, a claim that Russia denies.
