A senior US defence official told reporters that the Pentagon has seen indications of Russia sending troop reinforcements from “Georgia” to Ukraine to support its offensive in the Donbas region.

“We’ve seen our first indications that they are trying to send in some reinforcements from Georgia. We have seen the movement of some number of troops from Georgia. We don’t have an exact number,” the official said during a press briefing on Friday.

The Pentagon official did not clarify what the official meant by “Georgia” since there are no Russian troops in this country. The Defense Department press centre did not immediately respond to Sputnik’s inquiry on the issue.

On February 24, Russia launched a special operation in Ukraine after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk requested help to defend them from intensifying attacks by Ukrainian troops. The Russian Ministry of Defense said the operation is solely targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure only and the civilian population is not in danger.