Washington,A White House spokesman said Wednesday that US officials
have seen "no evidence" that Russian troops have pulled back from the
tense border with Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier said that the
estimated 40,000 Russian troops deployed on the frontier had withdrawn to their
usual training grounds.But, speaking to reporters on Air Force One, White House
deputy spokesman Josh Earnest said "to date" there has been "no
evidence that such a withdrawal has taken place."His statements echoed those of NATO, which earlier
Wednesday reported "no indication of a change in the position of military
forces along the Ukraine border."
Washington would "certainly welcome a meaningful and
transparent withdrawal," Earnest said. "That's something that we have
sought for quite some time."He was speaking after the Russian leader met with Swiss
President Didier Burkhalter, current chief of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe.Putin said of the troops he had ordered to Ukraine's border
two months ago: "We have pulled them back. Today they are not at the
Ukrainian border but in places of regular exercises, at training grounds."Putin said he also told pro-Russian separatists "to
postpone the referendums planned for May 11 in order to create the conditions
necessary for dialogue."
And he called the nationwide May 25 presidential elections
in Ukraine "a move in the right direction."State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki welcomed both
comments as "helpful" a day after top diplomats slammed the Russian
leader for helping to organize what they said was "a bogus" and
"contrived" referendum in eastern Ukrainian cities.
But despite Psaki's more conciliatory note, she added
"there is far more that President Putin and the Russians can do to
de-escalate the situation and to ensure safe elections."
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