What were you saying, Darth Cheney? From AP via ABC News:
U.S. defense officials said Thursday that Russia has pulled most of its forces away from the Ukraine border, a withdrawal that the U.S. has been demanding for weeks.
They said about seven battalions remained, amounting to a couple of thousand troops. U.S. officials had estimated as many as 40,000 Russian forces had been aligned along the border with a restive eastern Ukraine that has been wracked with violence between government security forces and pro-Russian separatists.
The defense officials spoke only on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the precise numbers.
(my bold)
http://abcnews.go.com/...
I don't trust Putin one bit, but it's clear he blinked. The sanctions are working. President Obama worked with other countries to craft this non-military solution. And it succeeded! I'd wager monsters like Cheney and Old Man McCain are gobbling crow as we speak.
I think this is a bigger deal than the mainstream media has so far acknowledged. Granted the Soviet Union no longer exists, but getting the leader of Russia to stand down still carries a certain je ne sais quoi.
Peace.