US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned Thursday that Russia, instead of withdrawing the troops accumulated next to Ukraine, it is bringing them closer “little by little” to that borderand assured that it is even supplying the contingents with blood supplies.
“We see them gradually bringing some of those troops closer to the border,” Austin said at a press conference at the end of a meeting of NATO defense ministers, in which they discussed the implication for European security of the Russian military buildup. next to Ukraine.
He added that they have appreciated that they are flying “more combat and support aircraft” and, also, that they are improving their disposition in the Black Sea.
“We even see them supplying themselves with blood,” he said.
Austin recalled that he himself was “a soldier not long ago.” “I know firsthand that you don’t do this kind of thing if there’s no reason. And you certainly don’t if you’re getting ready to pack up and go home,” he added.
Thus, the head of the Pentagon made it clear that Russia continues troop buildup around Ukrainein Crimea, Belarus and the Black Sea, which said they already said about 150,000 military, and that before that situation the United States and the allies are going to “remain vigilant”.
Specifically, to detect possible “false flag operations, in which Russia fabricates a dramatic event to justify an attack, a game that we have seen them play in the past,” he said.
“We will continue to explore ways to raise our disposition, such as EE. UU and other allies have done with the deployment of additional troops on the East Flank,” he said.
Austin assured that “there is no reason for Russia to invade Ukraine again”, since “it is not threatening anyone”.
In any case, he considered that “there is still time and space for diplomacy” in favor of “a peaceful result that respects the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
“If not, it will be clear to everyone who (Russian President, Vladimir) Putin will start a war still having diplomatic options on the table,” he said.
“Putin says he doesn’t want a strong NATO on his western flank. He is getting exactly that,” he added.
Austin reported that he will then travel to Poland and Lithuania, and thanked Bulgaria that on Wednesday he agreed to accommodate a US Stryker of Battered Vehicles to perform joint training.
Asked about the bombings registered at the eastern border of Ukraine, Austin said they are “certainly worrying” and that they are still “working on the details”.
“We said for a while that Russians could do something like that to justify a military conflict,” he said, “so we are following it closely.”
Regarding the cyberattack that Ukraine has registered this week and that he considered the largest in its history, he pointed out that “the intelligence community continues to evaluate what happened.” (I)
Source: Eluniverso
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