UPDATE 1-Russia says battalion withdrawing from near Ukrainian border

[dipsydoodle]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Russia is withdrawing a motorised infantry battalion from a region near Ukraine's eastern border, the Russian Defence Ministry was quoted as saying by state news agencies on Monday.

The United States says progress on resolving the East-West stand-off over Ukraine depends on Russia pulling back troops massed on the border. It was not clear whether other troops would pull back or had already withdrawn.

The Defence Ministry said it was pulling forces out of the Rostov region near Russia's border with Ukraine after month-long military exercises.

"The battalion ... has completed its field exercises at the Kadamovsky training grounds in the Rostov region and is beginning its march to its permanent base in the Samara region," the ministry was quoted as saying.

A battalion numbers between 300 and 1,200 troops.

Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/31/ukraine-crisis-russia-border-idUKL5N0MS3NZ20140331

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Washington (AFP) - Nearly 100,000 Russian forces have massed on Ukraine's border, a top Ukrainian defense official told an American audience Thursday, giving a number far higher than US military estimates.

"Almost 100,000 soldiers are stationed on the borders of Ukraine and in the direction ... of Kharkiv, Donetsk, " Andriy Parubiy, chairman of Ukraine's national security council, said via a webcast from Kiev.

"Russian troops are not in Crimea only, they are along all Ukrainian borders. They're in the south, they're in the east and in the north," Parubiy said.

http://news.yahoo.com/ukraine-claims-100-000-russian-troops-near-border-151112283.html

Still a few to go then along the 1400 mile border.

[think]

1. Hopefully a good sign and gesture to keep peace in the world.... /nt

[blm]

3. Salute to Sec of State Kerry.

He's been working triple overtime to PREVENT use of military force this past year.

[lostincalifornia]

7. yes, and you have to give Obama credit also. Gee, all the criticism from the repugs on how the

administration is "weak", along with the MSM spewing out the repuke talking points.

Funny, but if this gets resolved diplomatically, which most of us want, I have no doubt the media will give a very brief sentence, and then move on, ignoring the last two weeks when they were criticizing up the kazoo.

It looks like, and hopefully it is, the media will be shown how wrong their analysis is.

It actually gives me hope for 2014, since our media has already sealed a supposed victory for the repukes

[go west young man]

11. Looks like cooler heads are starting to prevail.

I'm glad we have Obama and Kerry instead of right wing hawks at the helm.

[lostincalifornia]

12. There is no question in my view that the republicans would be extremely reckless if they had the

opportunity, just as when bush was president

You are right we are quite fortunate that the hawks are not in control now

[JDPriestly]

13. I don't know, but I strongly suspect that Kerry is the only one sitting at the table negotiating

about Ukraine who knows first-hand what war means.

Kerry is a good man with a strong character. He has seen the suffering that war brings first-hand. That first-hand experience is worth a lot.

[blm]

16. Putin's had the KGB files on Kerry. He knows Swiftliars was just Rove political theater. He knows

Kerry ran straight at the man shooting shoulder rockets at his boat and killed him with his bare hands.

He knows the truth about Kerry's many feats of war heroism, and that Kerry can probably outshoot him, out-ski him, and outride him on horses, motorcycles, bikes, and even ice-skates. Kerry was never a wimp like Bush.

Unfortunately, that type of personal strength matters to Putin's Napoleonic-type personality.

[JDPriestly]

17. My opinion precisely.

[blm]

19. Well then, salute to a comprehensive patriot. ; )

Last edited Tue Apr 1, 2014, 08:52 PM - Edit history (1)

.

[groundloop]

2. Oh SNAP.... maybe we won't get to start a war with Russia after all

[Bosonic]

4. maybe

Foreign Ministry concerned about 'strange' maneuvers of Russian troops on border with Ukraine

KYIV, March 31 /Ukrinform/. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is concerned about "strange" maneuvers of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine.

Director of the Information Policy Department of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Yevhen Perebyinis said this at a briefing in Kyiv on Monday, a Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"We have information that the Russian Federation is conducting strange maneuvers on the border with Ukraine. Troops are being pulled back in some areas, and in other areas, quite the contrary, they are being brought. Such movements of armed forces cannot but cause concern," he said.

Moreover, the diplomat added, the Ukrainian side still has not received clear explanation from Russia about the purpose of such movements.

http://www.ukrinform.ua/eng/news/foreign_ministry_concerned_about_strange_maneuvers_of_russian_troops_on_border_with_ukraine_319444

[dipsydoodle]

5. Maybe the troops are moving Gangnam Style

[Comrade Grumpy]

6. Heh.

[Iliyah]

8. LOL

[AtheistCrusader]

9. South, east, north? Was that a jab at Rumsfeld?

[DonCoquixote]

10. Oh yes

All those on the left and right that said Kerry was just a fool, and that Obama was weak, will be the same people that benefit from the fact we are not at War with Russia.

[Bosonic]

14. No Signs Russia Is Withdrawing From Ukraine Border: NATO

No Signs Russia Is Withdrawing From Ukraine Border: NATO

BRUSSELS — NATO's secretary general said on Tuesday he had seen no evidence that Russia is withdrawing its forces from the border with Ukraine.

"Unfortunately, I cannot confirm that Russia is withdrawing its troops," Anders Fogh Rasmussen told reporters ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels.

"This is not what we are seeing."

Rasmussen said Russia had undermined the principles on which a NATO-Russia partnership had been built, and that as a result there could be no more "business as usual".

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2014/04/01/world/europe/01reuters-ukraine-crisis-nato-russia.html?smid=tw-share

[dipsydoodle]

15. The ones referred to yesterday were c. 70 miles away in Rostov

so I'm not sure what is meant by the border.

[Bodhi BloodWave]

18. i wouldn't be surprised if they are not happy until the troops are on the other side of the urals nt