Russia Agree On Build Up: ‘But Alleged Buildup Near Ukraine Insufficient For Attack’

Moscow, Feb 7 (UNI/Sputnik) Russia does not have enough military personnel amassed along the common border with Ukraine to launch full-scale actions, former Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk said. “Russia can now seize any city in Ukraine, but we still do not see the 200,000 troops that are needed for a full-scale invasion,” Zagorodnyuk said in an interview with the Guardian newspaper published late on Sunday. The current situation, in general, is “dire” but the scenario of the Russian invasion is not inevitable, he noted.

The current defense minister of Ukraine, Oleksii Reznikov, estimated on Sunday that further escalation was of low probability. Over the weekend, major US and international media reported, citing US officials, that Russia had allegedly brought at least 70% of the military firepower to the common border with Ukraine for a potential full-scale invasion, which could result in up to 50,000 civilian casualties, as well as from 5,000-25,000 Ukrainian troop casualties, and 3,000-10,000 casualties among Russian soldiers.

Russia has repeatedly denied having plans to attack any country but said it reserves the right to move troops inside its sovereign territory as it sees fit. Russia has also warned that NATO’s plans to expand further eastward, including in Ukraine, represent a threat to its national security.