The US Department of Defense sees the Russian announcement that it will significantly reduce hostilities in northern Ukraine as a tactical maneuver and a warning of a new military offensive in other parts of the country. Despite the Russian statement, one should not “deceive oneself,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Tuesday. So far, it has only been observed that “a very small number” of Russian troops are moving away from the capital north of Kiev.
“We are not prepared to believe the Russian justification that it is a deduction.” It is possible that the soldiers will only be withdrawn there to be deployed in another part of Ukraine, such as the contested eastern region of Donbass. “We believe this is a repositioning, not a withdrawal, and that we should all be prepared to anticipate a major offensive against other parts of Ukraine,” Kirby said.
Russian forces have “failed” in their attempt to take Kiev and are in defensive positions in the face of Ukrainian counterattacks. Russia may continue to fire missiles at Kiev from afar, Kirby warned. “The threat to Kiev is not over,” Kirby said. The US “is not convinced” that the threat situation for Kiev has changed significantly as a result of the Russian announcement. Kirby declined to comment on how many troops Russia is withdrawing from positions near Kiev. “What I can say is that the vast majority of forces gathered near Kiev are still there,” he said.
US President Joe Biden also reacted cautiously to the Russian announcement that it would significantly reduce hostilities in northern Ukraine. Biden told the White House that he did not want to evaluate the statements until he saw “the actions” of the Russian military. “Let’s see if they implement what they propose.” Until there is real change, pressure on Moscow with “tough sanctions” will continue and the Ukrainian military will continue to be supported, Biden said.
Vitali Klitschko, mayor of the Ukrainian capital Kiev, called for the withdrawal of all Russian troops as a basis for negotiations with Moscow. In “Bild” Klitschko says: “We can talk about normalization when every Russian soldier is out of our country”. The former world boxing champion also said that Ukrainian soldiers had given “a good response” to Russian attacks and “completely ruined the myth of the strongest army in the world”. “The Russians were not surprised, they were shocked because no one expected the Ukrainian army to be able to give a good response to the aggressor.”
Meanwhile, Russian forces bombed the Starokostiantyniv military airport in western Ukraine, completely destroying the fuel depots. “We have been under rocket fire since the first day of the war, but today … the attack was very serious and caused significant damage,” posted the city’s mayor, Mykola Melnychuk, on Facebook. As a result, the city’s entire fuel supply was destroyed.
According to Ukrainian sources, seven people were killed and another 22 were injured in a Russian attack on the regional administration in the southern Ukrainian town of Mykolaiv. More than 40 rockets landed on residential areas in the capital Kiev region in 24 hours, the military government said on the Telegram online service.
After further peace talks with Ukraine, Russia pledged on Tuesday to significantly reduce its military operations near Kiev and Chernihiv. Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said after a meeting in Istanbul that his government wanted to build trust and allow new negotiations.