MOSCOW, February 15. /TASS/. The Russian troops are returning to their permanent bases in accordance with the approved schedule regardless of the West’s hysteria over Russia’s alleged preparations for an invasion of Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"As for drills that Russia conducts on its own territory and in accordance with its own plans - let me specially emphasize that again - they begin, are implemented and concluded as planned. We have repeatedly stated that," the foreign minister said after negotiations with Polish Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Zbigniew Rau.
"And this refers to the drills in the country’s west, similar measures in the Far East or the joint Russian-Belarusian drills that are also developing and proceeding in strict compliance with the approved schedule. This is done irrespective of who thinks what, who and how is hysterical about this, who and how unleashes this genuine information terrorism and I am not afraid to use this word. The caravan keeps going," Russia’s top diplomat said.
Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov announced in a statement earlier on Tuesday that units of Russia’s Southern and Western Military Districts that had accomplished their tasks had begun loading their equipment onto railway platforms and motor vehicles and would begin heading to their military garrisons on February 15.
On the same day, Russia’s Defense Ministry uploaded video footage of military hardware being loaded onto railway platforms.
The West and Kiev have recently been spreading allegations about Russia’s potential ‘invasion’ of Ukraine. In particular, the news agency Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources, that Russia’s alleged invasion of Ukraine might begin on Tuesday, February 15. Meanwhile, the US-based newspaper Politico claimed in its material, citing its own sources, that US President Joe Biden told the leaders of allied countries via a video conference on February 11 that Russia might launch an attack on Ukraine on February 16.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan earlier said that the White House had no information on whether Russia had made a final decision on allegedly invading Ukraine. He added that the alleged Russian invasion might begin before February 20. UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss claimed on February 15 that Russia’s alleged invasion of Ukraine remained "highly likely."