Renewed fighting in eastern Ukraine and a buildup of Russian forces on the Ukrainian border prompted Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley to call his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts Wednesday and U.S. European Command to reportedly elevate its alert status to the highest level.
Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014, taking the Crimean Peninsula and forcing a frozen conflict in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine that ended with a July 2020 cease-fire. That cease-fire appears to have broken Friday, when four Ukrainian soldiers were killed and two were injured by Russian-backed separatists. It is unclear whether the buildup of Russian forces on the Ukrainian border is in advance of a military incursion or part of military exercises.
“We are aware of Ukrainian military reports concerning Russian troop movements on Ukraine’s borders,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters at a Wednesday briefing, noting the department is in communication with NATO allies about rising regional tensions.
Milley’s office released a series of readouts in the afternoon, noting phone calls to his counterpart in the United Kingdom, followed by calls to the Chief of the Russian General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov and Ukraine Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Ruslan Khomchak.
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The readout described the call with the Ukrainian defense leader as related to “the current security environment in Eastern Europe,” while in accordance with a previous agreement, the details of the call with Milley’s Russian counterpart were not disclosed.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan also spoke Monday with his Ukrainian counterpart and reaffirmed U.S. support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and European aspirations. Ukraine is a large recipient of U.S. military assistance and participates in a number of joint exercises in the Black Sea region.
The Institute for the Study of War released a security analysis March 18 indicating the pro-Russian forces in eastern Ukraine were posturing for a spring offensive, but Russian forces were not. Russia, however, had launched a disinformation campaign in Ukraine.
Kirby declined to confirm media reports that European Command had elevated its watch level to the highest level, but he explained the purpose of the move.
“It’s a way of improving and increasing a leader’s visibility, noting that there’s something worth watching,” he said. “A watchcon basically expresses a combatant commander’s concern about a potential threat and the ability to provide future warning.”
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Russian force movements in the region are worrying defense officials, Kirby affirmed.
“We’ve been very clear about the threats that we see from Russia across domains,” he said. “We’re taking them very, very seriously.”
