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'Russia could invade Ukraine'

August 6, 2014

NATO has warned that the Russian military buildup at the Ukrainian border could be a pretext to the invasion of the eastern European nation. Moscow has recently amassed more troops on Ukraine's eastern border, it claims.

https://p.dw.com/p/1Cpez
Russische Armee Übung in Yugra ARCHIV Juni 2014
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said on Wednesday that the Russian activities along the border with Ukraine were creating "a dangerous situation" which could "undermine efforts aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the crisis."

"We're not going to guess what is on Russia's mind, but we can see what Russia is doing on the ground - and that is of great concern," a NATO statement from Brussels quoted Lungescu as saying.

The military alliance also said that Moscow "could use the pretext of a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission as an excuse to send troops into eastern Ukraine."

A NATO military officer told the news agency AFP on condition of anonymity that Russia had significantly increased the number of troops near the Ukrainian border. "The roughly 20,000-strong troop presence included tanks, infantry, artillery, air defense systems, as well as logistics troops, special forces, and various aircraft," the officer said Wednesday.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk echoed NATO's concern on Wednesday.

"We have reason to believe that the threat of a direct intervention is certainly bigger than a few days ago," Tusk said. "Should it come to an intervention by Russian troops in Ukraine, this would certainly be a situation of new qualitative dimensions," he added.

Last week, Russia announced large-scale air defense exercises along its Ukraine border. The military exercise, which kicked off on Monday, involves around 100 aircraft, and will continue until Friday, a Russian air force spokesman told the Interfax news agency.

Escalation of tensions

Andriy Lysenko, a Ukrainian military spokesman, said Wednesday that 18 Ukrainian troops were killed and 54 injured in renewed fighting with pro-Russia rebels. Lysenko said the government forces had clashed with separatists 25 times in different parts of eastern Ukraine as they continued to recapture lost territory.

Ukrainian troops have been waging a war against the rebels since April in the Russian-speaking east. Western countries accuse Russia of aiding the separatists and contributing to the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the region. Moscow denies these accusations and claims civilians are suffering because of Kyiv's military offensive.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights says the conflict has cost the lives of more than 1,100 people, including government forces, rebels and civilians. Tensions worsened after the downing of Malaysian flight MH17 over rebel-held territory on July 17, with Western countries claiming the rebels fired at the civilian airliner using a Russian-supplied missile.

shs/rc (Reuters, dpa)