'Border Deployment of Troops Is Not a Threat', Russia Clarifies

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday stated that the deployment of Russian troops to regions near the Ukrainian border does not constitute a threat.

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"We have already given all explanations both about the movement of our Armed Forces on our territory and about the fact that we pose no threat to anyone," he said in response to the concerns of the G7 group, which is made up of the U.S., Canada, Germany, France, Italy, the U.K., and Japan.

Peskov stressed that these countries should call Ukraine's attention to abandon its provocative actions instead of issuing warnings against Russia.

On Monday, the G7 and European Union (EU) High Representative Josep Borrell called on Russia to cease "its provocations" and respect the commitments of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) related to transparency of military movements, risk reduction, and confidence.

Earlier, the Ukrainian government requested an OSCE meeting for Russia to explain its increased military presence on the border.

Besides stressing that its troops can move freely within its own territory, Russia pointed out that the movement of troops and military equipment is part of a regular exercise that the Armed Forces conduct after the winter season.

The Kremlin accused Ukraine of provoking the current escalation of conflicts in the Donbas, a region where the Ukrainian Army and separatist rebels from Donetsk and Lugansk have been clashing since 2014. Between April 9 and 11, over 500 ceasefire violations were recorded in that area, according to the OSCE special monitoring mission.

Given the possibility of escalating violence in the Donbas, Russia again warned that it will do everything possible to ensure the safety of Russian speakers living in that region, where Moscow has handed out over 600,000 passports since 2019.