NATO confirms that Russia has not withdrawn its forces from Ukraine borders

Satellite photographs reveal that Russia has not withdrawn its military from Ukraine’s borders, according to NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

On the sidelines of a two-day conference of NATO defence ministers in Brussels, he told reporters, “Our intelligence information has already been corroborated from open sources, through commercial satellite imagery.”

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated on Wednesday that the alliance will beef up its eastern flank, saying that the Russian threat has become “the new normal in Europe.”

“The ministers decided today to develop alternatives to strengthen NATO’s defensive and deterrent capabilities, including exploring the formation of new NATO combat groups in Central and Southeast Europe,” Stoltenberg said after meeting with member state military ministers.

The Alliance is bracing for the worst-case scenario.

On Wednesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned the alliance was “getting ready for the worst” in the Ukraine situation with Russia.

The NATO ministers will meet with their Ukrainian and Georgian colleagues tomorrow, Thursday, at the start of the second day of their summit.

While Russia “continues to intensify and build forces near Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said the alliance saw no signals of de-escalation from Moscow “yet.”

“We are ready for talks with Russia, as well as any other alternatives,” he continued, expressing hope that “Russia will engage in the diplomatic road.”

“Russia maintains capabilities to undertake a full-scale invasion of Ukraine,” Stoltenberg added, adding that NATO “would welcome any reduction of Russian military on Ukrainian borders.”

“The number of Russian forces on the Ukrainian border is increasing,” he said, adding, “We are closely monitoring what Russia is doing on the Ukrainian border.”

In reply, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said today, Wednesday, that he has yet to see Russian military retreat from areas near the Ukrainian border.

During a visit to western Ukraine, Zelensky was quoted by the BBC as saying, “We are dealing with the facts that we have, and we don’t see any withdrawal yet.”