BERLIN: The Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a partial withdrawal of troops from the border with Ukraine.
The president informed about this decision in a telephonic conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the German sources said.
Thousands of Russian soldiers are still said to be deployed along the border.
Earlier, Ukraine condemned a visit to Crimea by Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and a delegation of government ministers.
In a statement, a foreign ministry spokesman in Kiev said that the highest-level trip to the Black Sea peninsula by officials from Moscow was a sheer violation of international rules.
