In a Telegram post, Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: "February 15, 2022 will go into history as the day western war propaganda failed. They have been disgraced and destroyed without a single shot being fired."

 

Units of Russia's Western and Southern Military Districts are heading back to base by rail and by truck at the conclusion of their training, the Russian Defence Ministry said.

 

"Units of the Southern and Western Military Districts, which have accomplished their missions, are boarding trains and trucks and will head for their garrisons later today. Some units will join military convoys and will perform self-propelled marches," Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov was quoted as saying by the Russian media.

 

Later, the Defence Ministry released a video showing Russian armoured vehicles returning to base from exercises.

 

The video features an off-road march of tanks, as well as tanks, infantry combat vehicles and self-propelled artillery systems being loaded onto a train, according to Russia's Interfax news agency.

 

The Russian ruble has also strengthened against the dollar and euro in response to the news from the Russian military, the BBC reported.

 

"The absence of armed action on the Ukraine border and indications about the willingness to talk seem sufficient to soothe market nerves," said Michael Leister, head of interest rates strategy at Commerzbank.