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Russia said Wednesday it was returning more troops and weapons to bases, yet another gesture apparently aimed at easing fears it is planning to invade Ukraine, even as the U.S. said the threat of an attack remained.

Russia has massed about 150,000 troops east, north and south of Ukraine, sparking Western concerns it was planning an assault. There have been no indications of a significant withdrawal of those forces, but this week has seen a handful of gestures from Moscow that offered hope that Europe might avoid war following weeks of escalating East-West tensions.

On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry released a video showing a trainload of armored vehicles moving across a bridge away from Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. It said the movement was part of a return of forces to their permanent bases.

A day earlier, the ministry reported the start of a pullback of troops following military exercises near Ukraine. And Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled he wanted a diplomatic path out of the crisis, emphasizing that he did not want war and would rely on negotiations to achieve his key goal of keeping Ukraine from joining NATO.

While the U.S. and its allies continued to express skepsticism about Russia’s intentions, the moves nonetheless changed the tenor amid the worst East-West security crisis since the Cold War.

Still, Putin did not commit to a full withdrawal, saying Russia’s next moves in the standoff will depend on how the situation evolves. The Russian military hasn’t given the number of troops or weapons being withdrawn and offered few other details.

President Joe Biden noted Tuesday that American officials had not verified Russia’s claim.

“Indeed, our analysts indicate that they remain very much in a threatening position,” Biden said in remarks at the White House. Still, he promised that the U.S. would give diplomacy “every chance.”

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace also said “it’s too soon to tell” whether the pullback is genuine, noting that the Russians “haven’t taken the foot of the gas.”

“I think what we haven’t seen is evidence of withdrawal that has been claimed by the Kremlin,” he told Sky News. “In fact we’ve seen continued buildup of things like field hospitals and strategic weapons systems. Until we see a proper de-escalation, I think we should all be cautious about the direction of travel from the Kremlin.”

On Wednesday, Russian fighter jets flew training missions over Belarus that neighbors Ukraine to the north and paratroopers held shooting drills at firing ranges there as part of massive war games that the West feared could be used as cover for an invasion of Ukraine.

Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei reaffirmed that all Russian troops will leave the country after the maneuvers wrap up Sunday.

Russia has denied having any invasion plans and has mocked Western warnings about an imminent invasion as “hysteria” and “madness.”

Asked by German daily Welt if Russia was going to attack Wednesday — named by Western officials as a possible invasion date — Russia’s ambassador to the European Union Vladimir Chizhov quipped: “Wars in Europe rarely start on a Wednesday.”

“There won’t be an escalation next week either, on in the week after, or in the coming month,” he said.

Russia wants the West to keep Ukraine and other former Soviet nations out of NATO, halt weapons deployments near Russian borders and roll back forces from Eastern Europe. The U.S. and its allies have roundly rejected those demands, but they offered to engage in talks with Russia on ways to bolster security in Europe.

Speaking after meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Putin said Tuesday that the West agreed to discuss a ban on missile deployment to Europe, restrictions on military drills and other confidence-building measures — issues that Moscow put on the table years ago. He added that it would do so only in combination “with the main issues that are of primary importance for us.”

While Scholz reiterated that NATO’s eastward expansion “is not on the agenda — everyone knows that very well,” Putin retorted that Moscow will not be assuaged by such assurances.

“They are telling us it won’t happen tomorrow,” Putin said. “Well, when will it happen? The day after tomorrow? We want to solve this issue now as part of negotiation process through peaceful means.”

Scholz also said diplomatic options are “far from exhausted,” and praised the announcement of a troop withdrawal as a “good signal,” adding: “We hope that more will follow.”

But Ukrainian officials expressed skepticism, saying they want to see evidence of the Russian pullback and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that there have been no signs, so far, of a reduced military presence on Ukraine’s borders.

Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly sought to project calm but also strength during the crisis. In a show of resolve, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared Wednesday the “day of national unity,” calling on citizens to display the blue-and-yellow flag and sing the national anthem in the face of “hybrid threats.”

In Moscow, Russian lawmakers on Tuesday sent an appeal to Putin urging him to recognize rebel-held areas in eastern Ukraine as independent states — where Russia has supported rebels in a conflict that has killed over 14,000 since 2014. Putin signaled that he wasn’t inclined to back the motion, which would effectively shatter a 2015 peace deal that was a diplomatic coup for Moscow.

Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Dilendra Prasad Badu said efforts are being made to forge an agreement for introducing the US-aid proposal Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) in the House.

As he said, time has been fixed till Friday to forge consensus for the same.

Talking to mediapersons after the meeting of House of Representatives (HoR) today, Minister Badu explained that the document was required to be tabled in the House to address related discourses and disputes at the public and political sphere. “We aim to find a common ground for taking the proposal to the parliament for deliberations.” As he said, political parties have realized they need more time to have an agreement on the matter.

The Lower House will meet again at 1 pm on Friday and top leaders of ruling partners will be sitting a day before the session for further discussions on the proposal.

Similarly, CPN (Unified Socialist) senior leader Jhalanath Khanal argued that the document needed to be revised before proceeding towards the parliamentary actions as the public were not informed while signing it. “Consensus on some issues is followed by amendments and revisions. Hence, force is not applicable in such cases.”

In his response to a media query that it was possible to be part of the government and to get engaged in street protest at the same time, the former Prime Minister argued, “Of course it is possible and you can see it happening at the moment.”

CPN (Maoist Centre) leader Onsari Gharti Magar termed the MCC proposal the issue of national concern and it was agreed to not float the document in today’s HoR meeting with the realisation of the need of further discussions so as to establish a widespread agreement before advancing towards the House proceedings. “We urged the same before the meeting.” RSS

Police arrested 77 persons for staging demonstrations against the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) on Wednesday.

Nepal Police spokesperson Bishnu Kumar KC said that 77 persons were detained from different parts of the Capital. 

As many as 21 sister organistaions of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, CPN (Maoist Centre) and other six parties staged demonstrations outside the Parliament building in New Baneshwor this afternoon. 

Demonstrators and police personnel also clashed in the Baneshwor area. 

Police used water cannons and also lobbed tear gas shells after the protesters pelted stones at them. 

The meeting of the House of Representatives has been postponed till Friday. 

Speaker Agni Prasad Sapokota postponed the meeting after endorsing the report of Tharu Commission and a condolence motion. 

He said that the next meeting will be held on Friday.