NATO still sees no signs of de-escalation near Ukraine – Stoltenberg
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed "cautious optimism" in connection with signals from Russia about readiness for negotiations on the situation around Ukraine.
"There are signs from Moscow that diplomacy should continue. This gives grounds for cautious optimism," the NATO Secretary General said at a press conference.
However, according to him, so far there is no data indicating de-escalation on the part of the Russian Federation directly on the ground.
"But so far we have not seen any sign of de-escalation on the ground," he noted.
"We will of course, follow very closely what's happening on the ground," Stoltenberg said.
According to Stoltenberg, in a number of cases, NATO observed that Russian forces left positions near Ukraine, but left military equipment there, so that, if necessary, troops could quickly return to the border. "The movement of forces, the movement of Russian capabilities doesn't represent real de-escalation," he added.
