The Russian troops have amassed near the Ukraine border has alerted the west which is scared of a Crimean-style annexation of Ukraine by Russia. Moscow has accused the West of taking an aggressive approach in the tension-filled Ukraine.
The West is worried about the Russian troops concentrated near the Ukrainian border, particularly the United States. The US has warned of a swift, severe, and united response towards Russia. According to Western Intelligence, Russia has gathered around 100,000 troops on the eastern side of the former Soviet Union.
West is fearing a Crimean-style invasion of Ukraine by Russia which happened in 2014. There have been various rounds of talks between Moscow and the West but Russia has not removed the troops from near the border. Russia has defended its actions and stated that the fears of the West are unfounded and it is not planning to start a war. The West is keenly watching what Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia will do next.
Ukraine has deep cultural ties with Russia and the Russian language is widely used there. Russia has expressed discontent over Ukraine’s enhancing move towards the European institutions and it doesn’t want Ukraine to join NATO. the demand has been collectively rejected by the Western countries including the US, EU countries, and the NATO allies.
When the pre-Russian president was deposed in 2014, Moscow got alarmed and annexed Ukraine’s Southern Peninsula Crimea. Russia was also seen backing the separatists who helped it in capturing large parts of Ukraine’s eastern region. In the eight years of the fights in the region, around 14000 lives have been lost.
The West believes that the threat of war is real. It has tried to negotiate with the Russian officials several times. Putin has spoken to US President Joe Biden but the troops have not been removed from the border. The US officials have said that Russia has not been able to provide evidence that it will not invade Ukraine. The latest statements by the Russian President in which he talked about taking appropriate retaliatory measures against the West’s aggressive approach have worried the Western Officials.
After completing one year of his term in office, Biden said that Russia will move in on Ukraine although a full-scale invasion of the country is not in Putin’s plans. It is also believed that the Russian government has provided passports to around 500,000 people in the rebel-held areas of Ukraine. This is assumed to be a political tactic by Kremlin to protect the citizens if the demands are not fulfilled.
Russia has denied any intention to attack Ukraine but it has demanded that NATO will not be expanded to include Ukraine or any other Soviet Nations. It has also asked that the West should drop the aggressive approach and insisted that the West should abandon all the military activities in Eastern Europe.