Ukraine crisis: Russian troops crossed border, Nato says
BBC News, November 12, 2014
A column of unidentified tanks was seen on a road near the rebel-held town of Shakhtarsk on Monday
Nato officials have seen Russian military equipment and Russian combat troops entering Ukraine this week, its top commander says.
"Russian tanks, Russian artillery, Russian air defence systems and Russian combat troops" were sighted, US Gen Philip Breedlove said.
Russia’s defence ministry denied that its troops were in eastern Ukraine to help pro-Russian separatists there.
However, the rebels have admitted being helped by “volunteers” from Russia.
The United Nations Security Council is convening emergency session later on Wednesday to discuss the reported sightings.
Heavy artillery fire rocked the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk, the industrial hub held by pro-Russian separatist rebels, on Wednesday morning.
It was unclear whether the fire came from besieging government forces or the rebels themselves, or both.
There were also reports of fighting near the rebel-held city of Luhansk. One Ukrainian soldier was killed and another injured north of Luhansk, when rebels fired on government positions near the village of Schastya, Ukrainian security forces said.
Analysis: Jonathan Marcus, BBC defence and diplomatic correspondent
Events in Ukraine seem to be turning full circle.
Back in August, Nato was warning about the deployment of Russian artillery batteries inside Ukraine, the supply of Russian military equipment to the rebel forces and the build-up of further Russian combat units at the Ukrainian frontier.
Since then many of these units have been withdrawn.
But now with tensions renewed, Nato’s Supreme Commander in Europe General Philip Breedlove has confirmed that over the past two days, Nato has seen columns of Russian armour, artillery and crucially - combat troops - entering Ukraine.
The question now is whether this is just a re-run of events in the summer or does a more significant clash beckon, perhaps one where the Kremlin may decide - in its terms - to teach the Ukrainians a military lesson.
General Breedlove also confirmed that Nato believes Russia is deploying nuclear-capable weapons to Crimea - a reference to reports that Russia is deploying short-range Iskander ballistic missiles there that could potentially be equipped with nuclear warheads.
Unmarked convoys
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has reported seeing unmarked convoys in the region in recent days.
Gen Breedlove, talking to reporters on a visit to Bulgaria, was asked about the purpose of the alleged Russian troop deployment.
He replied: “As to their intent, I’m not sure. My strategic team believes that there is a possibility that, as you know, this pocket of separatist Russian-backed forces and Russian forces in the east of Ukraine - it’s not a very contiguous pocket. There are lines of communications that are interrupted. There are airports that are not held by the Russian-backed forces etc.
"And so it is our first guess that these forces will go in to make this a more contiguous, more whole and capable pocket of land in order to then hold on to it long term."
Gen Breedlove did not specify how many troops, vehicles or weapons were seen.
The main city in Ukraine’s east, Donetsk, has seen its heaviest shelling in weeks
Russian defence official Maj-Gen Igor Konashenkov said “there was and is no evidence” to support Gen Breedlove’s claims.
Russia has consistently denied sending troops and equipment to support the rebels fighting in eastern Ukraine.
Preparations
Separately, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the country’s long-range bombers would go on patrol flights over the Arctic Ocean to the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.
He said that the current situation required Russia to restart the flights, which were abandoned at the end of the Cold War.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s defence minister has said that government forces are redeploying in preparation for a possible new offensive by pro-Russian separatist rebels.
A Reuters reporter captured armed men and military vehicles near a checkpoint in Donetsk on Wednesday
"The main task I see is to prepare for combat operations. We are doing this, we are readying our reserves," Stepan Poltorak told a government meeting.
More than 4,000 people have died since government forces moved in April to put down an armed insurrection by the rebels in the two regions, which border Russia.
A fragile ceasefire was agreed in Minsk on 5 September, although hundreds of people have been killed since then.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday her government was “not satisfied” with the progress in implementing the Minsk agreement, but added that there were no plans at present for further economic sanctions against Russia over its involvement in Ukraine.
"Further economic sanctions are not planned at the moment, we are focusing on the winter and the humanitarian situation there and how to get a real ceasefire," she said.
The OSCE said earlier that the conflict could get worse.
"The level of violence in eastern Ukraine and the risk of further escalation remain high and are rising," OSCE representative Michael Bociurkiw told reporters in Kiev.
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