1. NATO

Category Archives: NATO

NATO observes pullback of Russian troops from Ukraine

Posted on by

NATO has observed a significant withdrawal of Russian forces from inside Ukraine, but many Russian troops remain stationed nearby, an alliance military spokesman said on Wednesday.

There has been a significant pullback of Russian conventional forces from inside Ukraine, but many thousands are still deployed in the vicinity of the border, Lieutenant-Colonel Jay Janzen said in an e-mailed response to a request from Reuters for comment.

Some Russian troops remain inside Ukraine. It is difficult to determine the number, as pro-Russian separatists control several border crossings and troops are routinely moving back and forth across the border. Further, Russian special forces are operating in Ukraine, and they are difficult to detect, he said.

On September 4, a NATO military officer said Russia had several thousand combat troops and hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles inside Ukraine and around 20,000 troops close to the Ukrainian border.

As recently as a week ago, NATO said it believed Russia still had around 1,000 soldiers inside Ukraine despite some cuts in troop numbers since a ceasefire began on Sept. 5.

Janzen said there appeared to be a reduction in incidents, including artillery fire, between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists.

NATO welcomes these positive signs, and encourages all parties to continue to work towards a peaceful solution to this crisis, he said, while still expressing NATOs concern about the large numbers of Russian forces deployed close to the eastern Ukraine border.

See the original post:

NATO observes pullback of Russian troops from Ukraine

Nato sees significant withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine

Posted on by

A pro-Russian rebel at a checkpoint following shelling in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, on Tuesday. Photograph: Reuters/Marko Djurica

Nato has observed a significant withdrawal of Russian forces from inside Ukraine, but many Russian troops remain stationed nearby, an alliance military spokesman said on Wednesday.

There has been a significant pull back of Russian conventional forces from inside Ukraine, but many thousands are still deployed in the vicinity of the border, Lieut Col Jay Janzen said in an emailed response to a request for comment.

Some Russian troops remain inside Ukraine. It is difficult to determine the number, as pro-Russian separatists control several border crossings and troops are routinely moving back and forth across the border. Further, Russian special forces are operating in Ukraine, and they are difficult to detect, he said.

As recently as a week ago, Nato said it believed Russia still had about 1,000 soldiers inside Ukraine despite some cuts in troop numbers since a ceasefire began on September 5th. Lieut Col Janzen said there appeared to be a reduction in incidents, including artillery fire, between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists.

Nato welcomes these positive signs, and encourages all parties to continue to work towards a peaceful solution to this crisis, he said.

Meanwhile, the ceasefire between the separatists and government forces in the east of the country was breached as mortar fire struck an apartment block in the rebel-held city of Donetsk. Both sides said there was progress on the ground in fulfilling an agreement to pull back heavy artillery weapons from the front line, but today Kiev accused the rebels of violating the ceasefire.

Col Lysenko also said eight servicemen had been wounded in fighting overnight. A residential building in the north of Donetsk was heavily damaged by shelling, destroying at least two apartments.

While RIA Novosti news agency quoted the rebels as saying two people died in the attack, nobody at the scene could confirm any civilian casualties. That part of the city has been the subject of almost daily shelling despite the ceasefire, as fighting centred around the government-held city airport nearby has caught residential neighbourhoods in the crossfire. (Reuters/PA)

Excerpt from:

Nato sees significant withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine

NATO: 'significant pullback of Russian conventional forces' from Ukraine

Posted on by

BRUSSELS, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- NATO announced Tuesday that Russian troops have reduced their presence inside Ukraine.

NATO spokesman Lt. Col. Jay Janzen confirmed, "There has been a significant pullback of Russian conventional forces." Janzen declined to give a firm number of Russian forces remaining, but noted that Russian special forces are still operating in Ukraine.

"It is clear that NATO allies need to remain vigilant," Janzen said, despite the reduction.

Russia, which has denied that it has any troops inside Ukraine, has not yet commented on NATO's recent assertion.

Ukraine and Russian-backed rebels agreed on September 19 to establish a 15 kilometer buffer zone to facilitate the withdrawal of foreign fighters, mercenaries and military equipment, with oversight by the OSCE.

2014 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

See the original post:

NATO: 'significant pullback of Russian conventional forces' from Ukraine

NATO Confident in Afghan Security Following Political Power Sharing

Posted on by

UNITED NATIONS

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen says he is confident that Afghan forces can take charge of security behind a new government in Kabul that comes as part of a political power-sharing agreement following this year's historic elections. The NATO Secretary General spoke with VOA at the United Nations about Afghanistan, Syria, and Ukraine.

Rasmussen welcomed the power-sharing arrangement between Afghanistan's new president Ashraf Ghani and its new chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, saying NATO looked forward to the quick signing of agreements to permit the deployment of an alliance-led training mission in January 2015.

That will replace the NATO-led international security force that has been in Afghanistan since 2001. With that change, Rasmussen told VOA that he believed Afghan forces were up to the challenge of Taliban fighters who opposed the new government.

"I'm confident that the Afghan security forces can take full responsibility for security in Afghanistan by the end of this year as planned. They have been in the lead of security operations during the last year, and they have handled also difficult security situations quite professionally," he said.

Rasmussen said NATO had no formal role in the coalition that was striking Islamic State forces in Iraq and Syria but was ready to resume its training mission in Iraq if the new government in Baghdad asked.

"We have also decided to strengthen the exchange of intelligence and information to counter the risk and threats from foreign fighters returning to our home countries," he said.

Rasmussen said Russia's invasion of Ukraine was "a blatant breach of international law" that would forever change how NATO approached Moscow.

"After the end of the Cold War we had an historic chance to create something new in Europe: a Europe whole, free, and at peace. And to that end we also need cooperation with Russia. However, today we have to realize that Russia doesn't consider us a partner but an adversary. And we will have to adapt to that," said the NATO Secretary General.

Rasmussen ends his five-year term as NATO chief later this month. He will be replaced by the former Norwegian prime minister Jens Stoltenberg.

Read this article:

NATO Confident in Afghan Security Following Political Power Sharing

US Military Band Performs in Lviv: Concert held as Ukraine hosts NATO military drills – Video

Posted on by


US Military Band Performs in Lviv: Concert held as Ukraine hosts NATO military drills
A US military ensemble has given a special two-hour concert in Lviv. The band called the "US Armed Forces in Europe" performed various popular hits from across three decades - including songs...

By: UKRAINE TODAY

Originally posted here:

US Military Band Performs in Lviv: Concert held as Ukraine hosts NATO military drills - Video


  1. NATO