Initially, President of Russia Vladimir Putin stated that the men in green were not part of Russian Armed Forces, but groups of local militia who had seized their weapons from the Ukrainian Army.
ウラジーミル・プーチン大統領は当初グリーンメンはロシア軍ではないが、地元民兵組織がウクライナ軍から武器を奪ったと述べた 。