Russia continues to draw troops to Ukraine's borders - CNN
Russia continues to build up troops near Ukraine's borders, despite a video conference on December 7 that US President Joe Biden called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to de-escalate the conflict. Russia suspends and changes the schedule of commercial air and rail flights for the transportation of personnel and Russian military equipment. US and Ukrainian officials have evidence of this.
This was reported by CNN, citing a source in US intelligence agencies.
The interlocutor of the American publication stated that the Russian command continues to deploy additional units in the immediate vicinity of the Ukrainian borders. In satellite images available to CNN in recent days, Russian military equipment has been located less than 50 km from the Ukrainian border line.
According to satellite images from journalists, the number of Russian military equipment has increased over the past few days, from September 7 to December 5, and a new regiment has appeared near the village of Soloti, 30 km from the Ukrainian border.
Read also: The National Security and Defense Council has estimated how many troops Russia may need to invade
Michael Coffman, director of Russia's CNA research program, said a new regiment had been formed as part of the 3rd Motorized Rifle Division of the Infantry Division of the Land Forces. According to him, the main source of growth is concentrated in Voronezh, Yelnya and the occupied Crimea.
According to the latest estimates of American intelligence, more than 50 "battalion tactical groups" are deployed on the border with Ukraine and around it, six more are on the road. These groups, which can usually include up to 900 personnel. Each of them is a very diversified and fairly self-sufficient combat unit with a combination of troops, artillery, anti-tank weapons, reconnaissance and engineering units. BTG is known to have played a leading role in Russia's military activities in Ukraine in 2014.
What is known
- On December 16, Russia conducted joint exercises of fighters and bombers of the naval aviation in the occupied Crimea with calculations of the Bastion coastal anti-ship missile system (BKKRK) to destroy the naval training target in the Black Sea.
- On December 13, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that the Russian military had set up a field camp for military exercises in the winter at a training ground in the occupied Crimea.
- According to NATO, Russia has amassed between 75,000 and 100,000 troops, which fears a repeat of 2014, when Russia occupied the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and launched an armed conflict in Donbas.
- On December 10, the Ukrainian Navy was informed that Russia had also blocked almost 70% of the Sea of Azov around the occupied Crimea.
- A video of the transfer of Russian military equipment to the occupied Crimea has appeared on the Internet.
- On December 11, the Russian Federation conducted tank exercises with shootings near the borders of Ukraine and in the occupied Crimea.
- Russia will block the space over the occupied Crimea with new air defense systems.
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