Ukraine: Russia announces a partial withdrawal of its soldiers, Westerners remain cautious
Russian President Vladimir Putin during his press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday January 15 in Moscow.
AP - Sergey Guneev
Text by: RFI Follow
4 mins
Westerners noted this Tuesday a first "
positive
" sign but called for "
acts
", after the announcement of a partial withdrawal of Russian forces deployed around Ukraine, which have raised fears for weeks of an invasion and war. of magnitude.
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After weeks of escalation, the tone between Moscow and the West is now calm.
“
The fact that we are now hearing
that some troops are being withdrawn
is a good sign.
We hope that there will still be sequels
,” Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday during a joint press conference with Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
The German Chancellor felt that there were “
enough grounds for discussion
” with Russia “
for things to evolve positively
”.
The meeting between the two leaders is part of a diplomatic marathon by the Europeans and the United States to reduce tensions, fueled for weeks by the deployment of more than 100,000 Russian soldiers in the immediate vicinity of the 'Ukraine.
“
We are waiting for the actions
”
Supporting images, the Russian Ministry of Defense said this morning that some of these men would begin this Tuesday to "
return to their garrisons
", without specifying the number.
Russia is also continuing important maneuvers in Belarus, neighboring Ukraine, until February 20.
This announcement is considered by Washington and Paris as a “
first positive signal
”.
During a telephone interview, Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden nevertheless agreed on the need to “
verify
” this start of withdrawal.
“
Lyrics are good.
We are waiting for actions
“Explained the head of French diplomacy Jean-Yves Le Drian before the National Assembly.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for his part expressed "
cautious optimism
", while saying he was waiting for a "sign of de-escalation".
Kiev hailed the union of Ukraine and its Western allies which “
prevented any further escalation from Russia
”.
Vladimir Putin for his part assured that "
of course
" he did not want a war, while hammering that the expansion of NATO and the ambitions of Ukraine to join the Alliance constituted a threat for Russia .
Westerners and Moscow must find a compromise "
without abandoning their principles
", noted the German Chancellor.
“
We are ready to go on the path of negotiation
,” the Kremlin master said.
However, he denounced the rejection by the West of his main demands, namely the end of the Alliance's enlargement policy, the commitment not to deploy offensive weapons near Russian territory and the withdrawal of NATO infrastructure in Eastern Europe.
The Westerners have offered in exchange talks on subjects such as arms control, visits to sensitive installations or discussions on Russian security fears.
For Vladimir Putin, these questions and his demands must be part of the same "
package
" of talks.
Fragile situation
The United States says Russia can launch an invasion any day if it chooses.
Monday, while Moscow showed the first signs of appeasement,
Washington abandoned its embassy in Kiev to install it in Lviv
, further west.
Dozens of countries have urged their nationals to leave Ukraine, despite calls from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to remain calm.
The Kremlin spokesman denounced him as a “
groundless hysteria
”.
Sign that the situation remains fragile, Kiev announced on Tuesday that the websites of the Ministry of Defense and those of two public banks had been targeted by a cyberattack, the Ukrainian authorities pointing the finger "
the aggressor
", an expression generally used to designate Russia.
Earlier, Russia's lower house of parliament passed a call to President Vladimir Putin for Russia to recognize the independence of pro-Russian separatist territories that are fighting, with its support, the Ukrainian military in eastern Ukraine for eight years.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov assured that there was currently “
no official decision
” on this subject, but that the request of the deputies “
reflected the opinion of the
Russian population”.
“
This recognition would be a clear violation of the Minsk agreements
”, signed under Franco-German mediation and providing for the eventual return of these territories to the control of Kiev, immediately warned the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell.
(
With
AFP)
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Ukraine
Russia
United States
Olaf Scholz
Vladimir Poutine