FOG BLOG RUSSIA'S WAR ON UKRAINE LOG: U.S. INTEL SUGGESTS RUSSIA CHANGING STRATEGY, MOVING FROM KYIV

Russia is beginning to withdraw some forces from the area around the Ukrainian capital city of Kyiv in what the US assesses as a "major" strategy shift by Moscow, two senior US officials tell CNN.

The Russian forces now pulling back in some areas of the north will focus on gains in the south and east. The US is already observing these movements underway, including Russian Battalion Tactical Groups leaving the surrounding areas around Kyiv.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said Tuesday that it has decided to "drastically reduce hostilities" in the Kyiv and Chernigov directions, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said according to state media RIA.

The US assesses Russia will cover their retreat with air and artillery bombardment of the capital, one of the officials said. US officials caution that Russia could always reverse again if the battle conditions allow.

The move follows peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul on Tuesday. It also comes as President Joe Biden holds a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson to discuss the latest developments in Ukraine.

When taking questions from reporters later Tuesday, Biden said time will tell on what to make of the claim that Russia is reducing its actions around Kyiv. "We'll see. I don't read anything into it until I see what their actions are. We'll see if they follow through what they're suggesting," Biden said when asked whether Russia appearing to scale back its military operations in Kyiv is possibly a sign that the war coming to the end or if it was Russia trying to buy time. Biden also noted in his call Tuesday morning with European leaders that was a "consensus" among the leaders to "let's just see what they have to offer. We'll find out what they do." "In the meantime, we're gonna continue to keep strong the sanctions. We're gonna continue to provide the Ukrainian military with their capacity to defend themselves and we're gonna continue to keep a close eye on what's going on," Biden added.