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Ukraine rules out offensive against Russia-backed separatists

Meanwhile, Russia says it fears resumption of full-scale war in east Ukraine and could take steps to protect civilians.

Russia using old Putin tactic to justify military presence near the Ukrainian border.Moscow has continued to deny it ever sent troops into Ukraine despite overwhelming evidence during the seven-year conflict.

Is Russia about to launch a fresh offensive in eastern Ukraine?

Russia is reportedly amassing thousands of troops at its border with Ukraine, but the Kremlin denies that the buildup poses a threat. Is Ukraine facing the possibility of a Russian invasion?

  The United States and EU are watching reports of Russian troop movements on Ukraines border with increasing concern. NATO has assured Kyiv that the alliance will continue to support the countrys sovereignty and territorial integrity and monitor the situation closely. The EUs foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, has also given Ukraines government his assurances. Germany and France, which are mediating between Kyiv and Moscow in the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine as part of the so-called Normandy Format, have made similar pledges.

 In a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, President Joe Biden recently affirmed the USs unwavering support for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russias ongoing aggression in the Donbass and Crimea."

 But reports of Russian troop deployments to the regions of Bryansk, Voronezh and Rostov, as well as the annexed Crimean Peninsula, are circulating on social media. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has insisted that Russia, "moves its armed forces within its own territory at its own discretion," adding that this, "shouldnt worry anyone and does not pose a threat to anyone."

Russland has long been preparing for an invasion

Mykhailo Samus of the Kyiv Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies, is convinced that Moscow has long been preparing for an invasion and has already begun concentrating equipment and troops along the border with Ukraine.

 The analyst says "Russia has effectively created three new armies encircling Ukraine." He says six submarines armed with Kalibr cruise missiles — which are capable of carrying nuclear warheads — have been dispatched to Crimea. But Samus does not believe Putin will dare engage in open escalation. He says the Russian president prefers provocation through "hybrid proxy forces" — that is, through allies or via cyber or propaganda attacks.

Ukraine does not expect Russian attack in Donbas.Russian military activity does not indicate approaching major armed conflict, say Ukrainian security experts. 

Russian and Ukrainian security experts disagreed on Saturday whether Russia is preparing a new military operation in eastern Ukraine. 

While Ukrainian experts claim Russia is pushing the West to compromise, Russian experts argue that Moscow might launch a new operation in the Donbas region.

 Mykhalio Samus, deputy director of Ukraine’s Centre for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies, described recent increased Russian military activity along the Ukrainian-Russian border as information and psychological warfare to put pressure on Ukraine, France, Germany and the US and extract commercial concessions, particularly the Nordstream-2 natural gas pipeline.

Tension at Ukraine-Russia border

On March 30, Ruslan Homchak, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said Russia deployed its military near the Ukrainian border for “exercises.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia moved its armed forces within its territory "at its own discretion” and “it doesn’t pose any threat to anyone.”

Russian forces entered Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in February 2014, with Russian President Vladimir Putin formally dividing the region into two separate federal subjects of the Russian Federation the following month.

Is Putin about to launch a new offensive in Ukraine?

Russia has sparked alarm in Ukraine and throughout the international community in recent days by massing its armed forces close to the Ukrainian border. The military build-up has raised fears of a possible Russian offensive that could push beyond the areas of eastern Ukraine currently under Kremlin control and lead to a dramatic escalation in the simmering seven-year conflict between the two countries.

 Ukraine’s Western partners have responded to the threat by voicing their support for Ukrainian sovereignty and calling on Russia to end its aggressive actions. As tensions mounted late last week, US President Joe Biden made his long-awaited first call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and “affirmed the United States’ unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s ongoing aggression in the Donbas and Crimea.”