WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States doesn’t imagine Russia’s claim to be withdrawing troops from the Ukraine border and suspects Moscow has elevated its presence by as many as 7,000 troops, a senior Biden administration official mentioned on Wednesday.
“So yesterday, the Russian authorities mentioned it was withdrawing troops from the border with Ukraine….But we now comprehend it was false,” the official informed reporters with out providing particulars or offering proof.
The official, who spoke on situation of anonymity, mentioned the Biden administration confirmed that “Russia has elevated its troop presence alongside the Ukrainian border by as many as 7,000 troops” with many of them arriving as just lately as Wednesday.
The senior administration official additionally mentioned Russia has publicly claimed to interact in diplomacy and made claims of “de-escalation” whereas “privately mobilizing for warfare.”
Russia’s protection ministry mentioned Wednesday its forces have been pulling again after workout routines close to Ukraine and printed video that it mentioned confirmed forces leaving the Crimean peninsula.
But U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned in an interview on MSNBC on Wednesday that “vital items” have been shifting in direction of the border.
On Tuesday, U.S. President Joe Biden mentioned the United States estimated that 150,000 Russian troops had encircled Ukraine, a rise from earlier estimates of about 100,000.
The senior administration official mentioned the United States continued to obtain info that implies Russia can “launch a false pretext at any second” to justify an invasion of Ukraine. The official pointed to a rise in false claims and disinformation on-line by Russia in latest days.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose in Washington; Editing by Leslie Adler, Rosalba O’Brien and Cynthia Osterman)
