Moscow has withdrawn most of its troops from Ukraine, the country's president Petro Poroshenko has said, as Russia threatened military and economic retaliation against perceived aggression from the West.
The Kremlin denies sending soldiers and armour to assist separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine, but the European Union and United States were poised to impose new sanctions on Russia before Kiev and the militants agreed a ceasefire last Friday.
The measures were formerly approved by EU states on Monday, but put on hold "for a few days" to see if the ceasefire held. In an apparent warning to the bloc, Russia has allegedly reduced gas supplies to Poland, a key ally of Kiev that has been funnelling fuel back into Ukraine to boost stocks before winter.
“According to the latest information from our intelligence unit, 70 per cent of Russia’s troops have been recalled across the border,” Mr Poroshenko said yesterday. “This gives more hope that the peace initiatives have good prospects.”
In line with plans agreed last week, Mr Poroshenko said he was willing to support autonomy for eastern regions and to ask parliament next week to grant temporary self-rule to rebel-held areas of Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.
“Ukraine will not make any concessions on issues of its territorial integrity,” he said, adding that there “is and can be no talk of federalisation”.
Russia has publicly called for Ukraine to adopt a federal system – which could give it great and potentially destabilising influence in eastern areas – while the militants demand full independence from Kiev’s rule.
Ukraine’s military said the ceasefire was broadly holding despite isolated shooting. Exchanges of artillery fire were less frequent than earlier in a fragile truce that has seen at least five soldiers and one civilian killed.
Moscow claims not to be supporting the insurgents, despite their leaders regularly visiting Moscow, Russian troops being captured, killed and injured in Ukraine, and Nato and the US presenting satellite imagery they say shows Russian military hardware in Ukraine.
"The crisis in Ukraine, which was basically provoked and created by some of our western partners, is now being used to revive this military bloc," Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin said of Nato, just after a Russian submarine test-launched a new intercontinental missile.
Complaining of Nato plans to ramp up its presence in eastern Europe, Mr Putin said Russia would “be forced – absolutely forced – to take appropriate measures in response”.
“First of all, we are talking about creating a rational series of assault capabilities, including maintaining a guaranteed solution to the task of nuclear deterrence,” Mr Putin said.
“I would really like for there not to be any unnecessary fits of hysterics later, when these decisions are passed finally and start coming into effect.”
Top officials also warned that Russia would retaliate on the economic front if the West imposed more sanctions.
In a shot across EU bows as winter looms, Russia sent at least one-fifth less gas than ordered to Poland in recent days, Warsaw’s main gas firm said.
