Ukraine accused Russian-backed separatists of attempting to provoke its military yesterday, as satellite images indicate that the Kremlin has dramatically increased the number of its warplanes massing on the countries’ shared border and in Crimea.
There are growing fears that Russia could repeat its 2014 military incursion into
Ukraine, when Crimea was annexed and Moscow provided support for a nascent separatist movement in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
Airborne troops, attack helicopters and reconnaissance drones have also been stationed near the border. Satellite images published by
The Wall Street Journal show Su-30 fighters on a runway in
Crimea. The photographs were taken on April 16, according to the newspaper. Images taken in late March do not show the aircraft. Images of locations elsewhere in the region show that other warplanes have also been flown in, including Su-34s and Su-27s.
“[The Russians] have appropriately deployed the various elements of air power that would be needed to establish air superiority over the battlefield and directly support the ground troops,” Philip Breedlove, a retired US air force general, told the newspaper. Breedlove was the top Nato military commander during the 2014 conflict.
Officials in
Kiev said yesterday that the massed ranks of Russian troops already outweighed the forces that took part in the Kremlin’s operation in 2014. “Russian troops continue to arrive in close proximity to our borders in the northeast, in the east and in the south.
“In about a week they are expected to reach a combined force of over 120,000 troops,” said
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister. He added: “This does not mean that they will stop building up their forces at that number.”
Kuleba said that 30 Ukrainian troops had been killed on the front line since the start of the year, most by snipers. “Ukrainian troops have been ordered not to react to provocations,” he said. “A sniper shot is premeditated murder.”
In the Donbas region Ukrainian soldiers said they were under regular sniper fire from pro-Russian forces that they believe include members of the regular Russian army. Russia has denied sending troops to Ukraine and says that any of its servicemen there are “on vacation.”
More than 14,000 people have been killed since the conflict erupted.
At a front-line position near the east Ukrainian village of Shumy, a Ukrainian serviceman named Andriy pointed out where the bullets were coming from: “See the white roof over there? Look a little to right from it. This is the water tower. The snipers shoot from it. They want us to shoot back to destroy this watertower so that they can accuse Ukraine of destroying important infrastructure,” he said.
Another soldier said pro-Russian forces were barely 70 metres from their lines: “The snipers get into the ditch and click their triggers. The sound is very clear. They do it to show that they are there. This is psychological pressure.”
Josep Borrell, the EU foreign policy chief, said on Monday that Russia had concentrated more than 150,000 troops on Ukraine’s border and in Crimea. The figure was later revised downwards by the EU to more than 100,000.
The build up comes at a low ebb in relations between Washington and Moscow after the US imposed a series of sanctions and expulsions last week targeting Russian interests.
Russia has said the deployments are part of a three-week military drill to test combat readiness in response to what it calls threatening behaviour from Nato. It has said the exercise is due to end within two weeks.
William Burns, the CIA director, told Congress last week that the build up was probably an effort by Moscow to intimidate the Ukrainian government, as a warning to the Biden administration. “That build up has reached the point where it could also provide the basis for a limited military incursion as well,” said Burns. “So it’s something not only the United States but also our allies have to take very seriously.”
Sergei Shoigu, the Russian defence minister, said yesterday that Ukraine was seeking to destabilise the situation in the Donbas region. He also accused Nato of “provocative actions”.
Before imposing sanctions on Moscow last week President Biden, 78, spoke to President Putin and proposed a summit between the two leaders, saying he wanted a constructive relationship.
The meeting has yet to be confirmed but Putin, 68, will take part in a virtual climate conference tomorrow and on Friday organised by the White House.