Russia orders its troops back from areas near Ukraine border

Russia announced on Thursday that it was ordering its troop to return to base from the Ukraine border. The troop build-up had strained relations between the two countries that have been uneasy since Russian annexation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.

The relief among the investors was apparent as the currencies of both, Russia and Ukraine rose sharply after the announcement. Russia also ended the war games in Crimea.

A confirmed pullout of the troops brought in on top of the permanent contingent will likely be welcomed by Western countries that had been expressing alarm at the prospect of further Russian intervention in eastern Ukraine. Russian-backed separatists have been fighting the Ukrainian government in the region since 2014.

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Ukrainian president's spokeswoman said earlier this month that Russia had amassed more than 40,000 troops deployed om Ukraine's eastern border and over 40,000 in Crimea. Around 50,000 of them were new deployments, she said.

Moscow did not provide the exact number of troops but had insisted that the movement of Russian troops was defensive in nature.

In a tweet, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine "welcomes any steps to decrease the military presence & deescalate the situation in Donbas (eastern Ukraine)", adding "Grateful to international partners for their support".

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said he had ordered troops involved in exercises to return to their bases by May 1, as they had completed what he called an "inspection" in the border area.

"I believe the objectives of the snap inspection have been fully achieved. The troops have demonstrated their ability to provide a credible defence for the country," Shoigu said.

EQUIPMENT LEFT

Military hardware was to be left at a training ground near the city of Voronezh, about six hours' drive from Ukraine, so that it could be used again later this year in another big scheduled exercise.

Hours earlier, Shoigu had attended manoeuvres in Crimea, which Moscow said involved 10,000 troops and more than 40 warships. Russia also announced it had arrested a Ukrainian man in Crimea as a spy.

(With agency inputs)