The Campaign Update: The Inherent Madness of U.S. Membership in NATO

This happened on Tuesday:

TRT World @trtworld

President Putin announced a partial withdrawal of troops from near Ukraine but a surge of Russian military activity continues as Moscow conducts joint drills in Belarus and naval drills in Mediterranean and Barents seas. We look at some of Russia's current military exercises:

Or did it?

NDTV @ndtv

#UkraineCrisis | "The statement of Russian President Vladimir Putin (on conditional Russian withdrawal) is welcoming but it is not the last... We have to wait and watch how the discussions go further on": Sanjeev Bhagat, President, Eurolifecare Pvt Ltd, Ukraine

Sadly, given the near 100% corruption of the U.S. media, it’s almost impossible to really know. Here’s how Axios reported on the matter:

Axios @axios

JUST IN: Putin confirms "partial withdrawal" of troops from Ukraine border but signals threat not over

trib.alPutin confirms “partial withdrawal” of troops but signals threat not overHe also said he was prepared to re-enter security negotiations with the U.S. and NATO.

Here’s an excerpt from that story:

Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed Tuesday that he had decided to withdraw some troops from the border with Ukraine and was prepared to re-enter security negotiations with the U.S. and NATO.

Why it matters: The partial pullback marks the first sign of de-escalation since Russia began its massive military mobilization near Ukraine late last year, but Putin also made clear the threat is not over.

• Asked if troops will continue to withdraw or could ultimately move into Ukraine, Putin said that would depend on "the development of the situation locally" and the steps other parties take.

Driving the news: Speaking alongside German Chancellor Olaf Schoz, Putin stressed that "of course" he does not want war to break out in Europe, but that this is why it is so important that Russia's security demands are accepted by the U.S. and NATO.

• Close observers of Russia's military movements note that while a relatively small number of forces do appear to be moving back, those movements thus far pale in comparison to the arrivals of additional troops and equipment just in the past few days.

[End]

Note the last sentence that I bolded there: What in the hell does that even mean? Has anyone anywhere reported that Russia was executing a complete withdrawal? No. So of course whatever withdrawal began yesterday is going to amount to less than what Putin had accumulated near the Ukraine border over the past few months, a build-up that has been ongoing since at least October.