Russia launches new military exercises near Ukraine border

Russian military said it had launched drills involving 6,000 troops in the south and in the Crimean peninsula

Russia on Tuesday launched new military exercises near Ukraine and in annexed Crimea as it accused the U.S. of ratcheting up tensions by putting several thousand of its own troops on alert.

With the West already accusing Moscow of amassing more than 1,00,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian border, the Russian military said it had launched drills involving 6,000 troops in the south and in the Crimean peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014.

The drills involve combat firing exercises with fighter jets, bombers, anti-aircraft systems and ships from the Black Sea and Caspian fleets, the ministry said.