Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
THREAT OF WAR AS RUSSIANS CLOSE IN » »
Warships head for Ukraine 100,000 troops on border
ALL-OUT war between Russia and Ukraine could explode within days.
Senior Ukraine military sources fear Moscow, which now has almost 100,000 troops on the border, may be far more battle-ready than previously suspected.
Until recently they believed any attack was most likely in mid-may.
But yesterday President Putin piled on further pressure by sending 10 naval vessels towards Ukraine, which is backed by Britain and America.
UK commanders are said to be on high alert and monitoring the situation “with growing concern”.
Last night a source said: “The situation is being monitored constantly.
“I would definitely describe this as a growing crisis.” It is feared that within days more than 95,000 troops, backed by tanks, artillery and rocket batteries will be ready to invade. Special forces and a large number of paratroops are among units now massing at the border. Tens of thousands of Ukrainians have been called up. As well as the UK and the US, three other nations – Canada, Lithuania and Poland – back Ukraine in a group known as “the Quint”. UK defence Secretary
Ben Wallace joined the Quint in issuing a combined warning to Russia.
It pledged “united and unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of increased Russian military activity”.
And it added: “We will work closely with Ukraine to monitor the situation and call on Russia to de-escalate.”
Russia announced it was moving its 10 vessels, including landing craft and missile boats, from the Caspian to the Black Sea as part of “winter training”.
Its Black Sea fleet is based in Crimea, which it illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014. At the same time Russianbacked troops moved into the Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region to help local pro-moscow rebels in a bitter war that has so far cost around 14,000 lives.
The rising tension comes just months after I watched UK paratroopers exercising alongside Ukrainian allies in a show of force against Russia.
Jane’s Russia expert Bruce Jones said: “It is difficult to be too alarmist about this situation. Any conflict would present a serious challenge to the resolve and military capability of NATO.”
Col Richard Kemp, who led British forces in Afghanistan, said: “It might be a deception but we have to assume Russia intends to invade.
“However, my view is that this would be in a limited way to avoid a wider conflict with America.”
It might be a deception but we have to assume that Russia intends to invade COL RICHARD KEMP WHO LED UK TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN