MOSCOW: Satellite images show Russia has pulled back some military equipment from near Ukraine, but that other hardware has arrived and that Russia still has a lot of forces and equipment near its ex-Soviet neighbour, a private US company said on Thursday.

The images released by US-based Maxar Technologies, which has been tracking the buildup of Russian forces for weeks, could not be independently verified by Reuters.

US, Nato say Russia is building up troops near Ukraine

Western countries warned on Wednesday that there was a growing Russian military presence at Ukraine's borders, contradicting Moscow's insistence of a partial pullback.