Syrian schoolchildren walk as U.S. troops patrol near Turkish border in Hasakah, Syria Nov. 4, 2018. (REUTERS PHOTO)

MOSCOW, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- Russian officials cast doubts on Friday over U.S. plans of withdrawing its military from Syria.

Earlier in the day, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said the United States would leave about 200 of its 2,000 servicemen in Syria as a "small peacekeeping group."

The Kremlin said it was analyzing the statement, as it did not understand what the White House actually meant.

"Sometimes we hear different statements from different departments, so we monitor with great interest and careful attention how the U.S. position evolves on this issue," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"One should not believe in these statements, no matter who they come from, because on the next day they may be refuted by other political forces," echoed Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

She said at a news briefing that Moscow believed that the U.S. authorities had "no inner certainty" about their strategy in the region.

So far Washington has not presented a well-shaped concept with clear timing, quantitative indicators, goals and tasks of its planned actions in Syria, Zakharova added.

Russia from the beginning had a very clear position on the U.S. intention to withdraw its troops from Syria, stating that if implemented, this would be a step in the positive direction, she said. This could defuse the situation in Syria and would help strengthen its sovereignty and territorial integrity, Zakharova added.