It stated that the exercises had taken place in the Southern Military Area. They took place in the Rostov region, Krasnodar Krai and Crimea, which is the territory of Ukraine from the point of view of international law, but which was occupied and annexed by Russia in 2014.
However, training has also taken place in Stavropol Krai, Astrakhan Oblast, the North Caucasus republics, the Russian-occupied territories of Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and Armenia, Russia’s ally.
The Russian Ministry of Defense has indicated that the soldiers will return to their permanent locations after training.
Ukraine estimates that the number of Russian troops near its borders has risen from 93,000 in October to 104,000 now.
The increase in the number of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border has raised concerns in the West that Moscow is preparing to invade Ukraine.
On December 17, Russia’s foreign ministry officially revealed the “security guarantees” Moscow was demanding from the West and called on Washington to hasten talks on the issue.
Among other things, Russia has demanded a commitment from NATO not to pursue enlargement or to join Ukraine and other countries, and to renounce all hostilities in Ukraine, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
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