Russia's border pullback announcement after Zelensky's front-line invitation
A look back at the Russian Defence Ministry's announcement on 22 April 2021 that it would move forces away from Ukraine's border.
What did Moscow say about its troops near Ukraine on 22 April 2021? The Russian Defence Ministry announced that it would begin moving its forces away from the Ukrainian border the following day, 23 April.
The announcement followed accusations from Ukraine and its western allies that Russia was trying to provoke conflict by moving troops to the border. Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu had claimed the deployment was only meant for drills.
The statement came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, on 21 April 2021, invited his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to a face-to-face meeting on the front line in the war-torn Donbas. Zelensky's stated aim was to negotiate an end to the conflict.
So the two days placed a public invitation to talks beside a declared reduction of military pressure on the border. The Russian ministry's announcement gave a start date for the pullback, while the Ukrainian proposal named the Donbas front line as the place for a possible meeting between the two presidents.
