Nato says Russia regrouping to try to take Ukraine's Donbas

[BRUSSELS] Russia is not giving up on its offensive in Ukraine but will try to refocus on completely taking the Donbas region in the coming weeks, Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

"We now see a significant movement of (Russian) troops away from Kyiv to regroup, re-arm and re-supply and shift their focus to the east," Stoltenberg told a news conference.

"In the coming weeks, we expect a further Russian push in eastern and southern Ukraine to try to take the entire Donbas and to create a land bridge to occupied Crimea," he said before Wednesday's meeting of Nato foreign ministers.

He said Nato allies will discuss at the meeting the delivery of more weapons to Ukraine.

"We speak about advanced weapons systems. We speak about, for instance, javelins and other anti-tank weapons," he told a news conference, adding that ammunition, medical supplies and "high-end" weapons systems would also be discussed.

Russia on Tuesday accused Ukraine of staging new civilian deaths in a number of locations in an effort to pin the blame on Moscow.

The Russian defence ministry made the assertion after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded tough new sanctions on Moscow over killings in the town of Bucha that have prompted international condemnation.

The Russian defence ministry said on Tuesday that the Ukrainian military recorded a fake video that purported to show "peaceful civilians allegedly killed by the Russian armed forces".

The video was made on Monday evening in the settlement of Moshchun some 20km northwest of Kyiv and was designed to be distributed through Western media, Moscow said.

"Similar events are now being organised by the Ukrainian special services in Sumy, Konotop and other cities," the Russian defence ministry said, referring to cities in north-eastern Ukraine.

The ministry did not say how it obtained the information in its statement.

At the weekend, dozens of bodies were discovered in Bucha near Kyiv after the withdrawal of Russian troops. Ukrainian officials said some had their hands bound behind them.

Ukraine has blamed Russian forces, with Zelensky describing the killings as "war crimes" and "genocide".

Moscow denies any responsibility, saying that the images are fake or that the deaths occurred after Russian forces pulled out of the area.

The Kremlin repeated the denial on Tuesday, adding the West wanted to "smear" the Russian army.

"We still insist that any accusations against the Russian side, against the Russian military are not just groundless," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"This is a well-directed show. Nothing else. A tragic show." He said Russia would continue to promote its version of events. "We won't sit idle," he added.

REUTERS, AFP