Some Russian troops return from Ukraine border in a sign of de-escalation

Some Russian troops deployed in areas bordering Ukraine are returning to their bases following the completion of drills, Russia's defense ministry said Tuesday, in a major step toward de-escalation.

The ministry in a video published online announced that some units of the southern and western military districts had completed their exercises and begun to move toward their bases.

"Units of the southern and western military districts, having completed their tasks, have already begun loading onto rail and road transport and today they will begin moving to their military garrisons," said Igor Konashenkov, the ministry's chief spokesman.

It also released a footage showing some tanks and armored vehicles being loaded onto railway flatcars.

It was not immediately clear how many units were being pulled out and what impact it would possibly have on tensions between Moscow and the West.

Russia is pulling back troops from its southern and western military districts – the Ukrainian border, in other words – after completing “exercises,” the defense ministry says.

Could this be de-escalation, as Putin hinted with Lavrov and Shoigu? Currency markets think so pic.twitter.com/sGuNLSm7DT

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However, experts see it as a major announcement that would diffuse the simmering crisis.

It came hours before German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was set to be the latest European leader to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ahead of Tuesday's talks, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned that "the situation is particularly dangerous and can escalate at any moment."

"The responsibility for de-escalation is clearly with Russia, and it is for Moscow to withdraw its troops," she said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Konashenkov said "large-scale" Russian military drills were continuing in many areas, including joint exercises in Belarus and naval exercises in the Black Sea and elsewhere.

Russia and the US-led NATO military alliance have recently been at odds over Ukraine.

Western countries accused Russia of preparing for an invasion of Ukraine by amassing 100,000 troops and armaments near the border with that country.

Biden warns Putin of ‘severe costs’ of Ukraine invasion

US President Joe Biden has told Russian leader Vladimir Putin that Washington and its allies would respond “decisively” if Russia invades Ukraine.

However, Moscow has vehemently rejected the allegations, saying the military build-up is defensive in nature, slamming NATO over its increased military activity near Russian borders.

In December last year, Moscow asked NATO not to allow Ukraine and other former Soviet countries to join the Western military alliance. It also urged the alliance to stop its military deployments to Ukraine and to roll back it forces from Eastern Europe, demanding legally binding guarantees.

The demands were flatly rejected, with the military bloc saying its membership will remain open to Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has already warned that the US is deliberately designing a scenario to lure Russia into a war over Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova in a statement said Tuesday's news would show it was the West that had been fanning tensions by accusing Russia of plans to invade Ukraine.

"February 15, 2022, will go down in history as the day Western war propaganda failed. Humiliated and destroyed without a single shot being fired," she wrote on social media.

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