NATO welcomes the reduction of tensions on the Russian-Ukrainian border that followed the withdrawal of Russian troops from those areas, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters on Tuesday after talks with Prime Minister Eduard Heger of Slovakia in Brussels.
"We have seen that there have been a reduction of tensions. And, of course, we welcome that. At the same time, we will now monitor the situation and the developments very closely," he said, adding that NATO was concerned about developments it observed near Ukraine’s borders lately.
Earlier, Kiev and Western countries expressed their concerns over movement of Russian forces near the Ukrainian border. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at the time that the movement of Russian forces across Russian territory should not concern them because they do not threaten anyone.