NATO chief: Russia continues to pursue military solution to Ukraine conflict

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told MSNBC on Thursday Russia is continuing to escalate its assault on Ukraine despite the country saying in negotiations it would withdraw some troops as a sign of good faith. 

Russia said after peace talks with Ukraine on Tuesday that they would decrease the presence of troops in the cities of Kyiv and Chernihiv as a sign of goodwill. 

However, the U.S. and Ukraine have both said Russia is only withdrawing troops from those areas to reposition them in the Donbas region. 

Although the peace negotiations taking place in Turkey are encouraged, “what we see is that Russia continues its military operations. It continues to pursue a way to try to find a military solution to this conflict,” Stoltenberg said.

“We don’t actually see any withdrawal of Russian forces. What we see is that they are repositioning them and that they are planning for a more broad offensive in the Donbas region.”

The Pentagon said Russia has sent 1,000 fighters to the Donbas region and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Ukraine would be ready to defend the area. 

The peace talks are set to continue on Friday as Ukraine is demanding international security assurances and Russia says Ukraine needs to remain a neutral country and not seek NATO membership. 

Russia said the talks could be a precursor to a meeting with Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which Ukraine has requested since the start of the war. 

However, the promise to reduce troops in one region just to send them elsewhere is a worrying sign to the international community. 

“We have to judge them on their actions and not on their words,” Stoltenberg said.