A U.S. news report indicated that satellites have observed what appears to be a secret bridge over a river in Belarus near Ukraine. The website (thedailybeast) reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin claims he has ordered a partial withdrawal of troops, but the satellite images present a complex picture of massive military reinforcements threatening Ukraine.
The images taken by a commercial imaging company show that Moscow built a floating bridge on the Pripyat River near the Russian-Belarusian border. This bridge is located near the exclusion zone surrounding the Chernobyl reactor that exploded in 1986.
This development comes at a time when Ukrainian forces and NATO are on high alert amid conflicting signals regarding the bolstering of Russian troops at the Ukrainian border, a situation unprecedented in decades. Analysts fear that the bridge could be one of several potential routes for Russian forces currently stationed in Belarus to enter Ukrainian territory.
Military analyst Rob Lee noted the arrival of engineering units and bridge construction equipment in Belarus at the beginning of February. For its part, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops participating in current exercises in Belarus conducted a water crossing operation at the Pripyat River.
The new bridge in Belarus is not the only development observed by satellites this week; while some images show at least a reduction in the Russian military build-up in Crimea, other images captured elsewhere in the region indicate Moscow has expanded its presence.
