The Russian war in Ukraine appeared to be heading toward a potential peace agreement Tuesday when a Russian official announced a scale-back of military activity in Kyiv and Chernihiv.
Russian Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin spoke to reporters in Istanbul, Turkey, where negotiations between the two countries are taking place.
“In order to increase mutual trust and create the necessary conditions for further negotiations and achieving the ultimate goal of agreeing and signing (an) agreement, a decision was made to radically, by a large margin, reduce military activity in the Kyiv and Chernihiv directions,” Fomin said, according to Reuters.
Russia’s advances in the capital city, Kyiv, have stalled in recent weeks as Ukrainians launch counter-offensive attacks.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said the U.S. should “not be fooled” by the Kremlin’s recent claim that it is reducing military attacks. “Has there been some movement by some Russian units away from Kyiv in the last day or so? Yeah we think so,” Kirby said.
He added that the numbers have been small but believes Russia is “repositioning.” “[It’s] not a real withdrawal. We all should be prepared to watch for a major offensive against other areas of Ukraine. It does not mean the threat to Kyiv is over,” he said.
President Joe Biden echoed similar sentiments speaking at a press conference, saying, “I don’t read anything into it until I see what their actions are.” (RELATED: REPORT: Roman Abramovich And Ukrainian Diplomats Supposedly Poisoned After Peace Negotiations)
President Joe Biden said it remains to be seen whether Russia follows through with any actions to scale down its military operations in Ukraine, saying Washington and its allies will continue with strong sanctions and aid for Ukraine https://t.co/W4X8JeCKkQ pic.twitter.com/WJsNBwc3M1
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 29, 2022
“In the meantime, we are going to keep strong with sanctions and continue to provide the Ukrainian military with their capacity to defend themselves,” Biden said.