Lithuanian, Polish presidents urge Russia to withdraw troops from Ukrainian border

VILNIUS – Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda, on Friday on called on Russia to immediately withdraw its troops from the border with Ukraine. 

"We are calling on Russia to immediately withdraw its forces from the Ukrainian-Russian border, to implement the Minsk agreements and to cooperate with Ukraine based on international law and mutual respect," Nauseda said in a press release.  

In a phone call, the two leaders discussed the situation in Ukraine and joint actions at the NATO, EU and regional levels to deter Russia from escalating the situation.

Ukraine is accusing Russia of massing thousands of troops near its eastern border and in the annexed Crimean peninsula. Reports of a military build-up have emerged amid an escalation of bloody clashes between Ukraine's forces and Russia-backed separatists.

Moscow says it has sent troops to its western border for exercises in response to NATO's "threatening" actions.

Nauseda and Duda also discussed next week's climate change summit in Washington, according to the press release. 

The Lithuanian leader emphasized the need to ensure that Belarus' Astravyets nuclear power plant, which Vilnius says is unsafe, meets international nuclear safety and environmental protection requirements.

The two presidents also discussed the pandemic situation in their countries and progress in vaccinating their populations against the coronavirus.