February 16 came and went without a further Russian military incursion into Ukraine, but from Kyiv to Washington to Brussels, skepticism persists over Moscow’s claim to have begun withdrawing troops from the area.

On the contrary, a senior Biden administration official said on Wednesday evening that the U.S. has “now confirmed that in the last several days, Russia has increased its troop presence along the Ukrainian border by as many as 7,000 troops, with some arriving as recently as today.”