Reality Check: Russian Military Presence in Ukraine Coming Soon?

Moscow and Western countries keep bickering over an alleged presence of Russian troops in Ukraine.

"I state it openly and officially that there was no troop movement through the [Ukrainian] border and certainly no Russian military presence on the territory of Ukraine," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said on Thursday as reported by the new Russian website Sputnik.

Authorities from the two sides are increasingly paying attention to the issue, as financial sanctions are biting the Russian banking system. An American diplomat said that the United States would lift sanctions under three conditions related to Russian presence in Ukraine. 

"We remain prepared to roll back sanctions, if the fighting stops, the border is closed, the foreign forces and equipment are withdrawn and hostages are released," Permanent Representative to the United Nations Samantha Power said at the UN Security Council meeting.

Also Northern European countries paid attention to the issue on Thursday.  

“The illegal Russian annexation of the Crimea Peninsula and its aggression against Ukraine has brought huge change to the security situation in Europe. This also has implications for Northern Europe. We see increased Russian exercise activity, both in the High North and in the Baltic Sea.  An important aspect of our talks has been how best to respond to this. Resolve and firmness will be our best contribution to stability in our region,” Norway’s minister of defence Ine Eriksen Søreide said on Thursday during a meeting with delegations from Poland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and Denmark.  

Meanwhile, several reports indicated that the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic asked for a meeting with OCSE Minsk Group, Russia and Ukraine.