Putin warns of bloodshed as he moves troops into Ukraine
Russian forces to ‘keep the peace’ in breakaway states after president officially recognises their independence
VLADIMIR PUTIN last night warned of “bloodshed” as he ordered Russian troops into two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian president ordered the army across the border to “maintainpeace” after he recognised the independence of the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in a televised address to the nation.
In a speech that lasted almost an hour, Mr Putin accused the Ukrainian government of “genocide” and said it was sure to seek nuclear weapons with the assistance of the West.
He accused the West of holding a “knife to the throat” of Russia as he called Ukraine a US colony with a “puppet regime”.
Afterwards he signed a decree that recognised the independence of the Russian-speaking separatist regions, which have been under effective Russian control since Moscow stoked a separatist war there in 2014.
In Mr Putin’s eyes, it could create a legal basis for the Russian army to move across the border into the Donbas region and engage in direct conflict with Ukrainian forces, dashing months of Western diplomatic efforts aimed at averting an invasion.
Mr Putin last night deployed Russian forces to “maintain peace” in the Donbas region. “They are planning a blitzkrieg as it was before in 2014,” he said of the Ukrainian military in Donbas. “How long can this tragedy continue?
“We demand that those who seized power in Kyiv immediately stop hostilities, otherwise, the responsibility for the continuing bloodshed will rest entirely with the Ukrainian regime.”
The live television feed cut to footage of him signing two decrees – one recognising the Donetsk People’s Republic and the other recognising the independence of the Luhansk People’s Republic. The leaders of the separatist statelets were shown in the Kremlin putting their signatures on a friendship treaty with Russia signed by Mr Putin.
The Russian president’s tone and description of Ukraine as an imminent security threat left little hope that war could be avoided.
“Whereas before, Russia didn’t have a justification for overt military intervention even under its own laws, now it will,” Samuel Charap, an analyst at the Rand Corporation, said.
It was not clear last night if Mr Putin planned to recognise all the territory claimed by the separatists, or just that which they already de facto control. A more expansive vision could see Russia push past the line of contact with Ukrainian armed forces.
The announcement drew condemnation from Western governments, which threatened to impose sanctions.
The Prime Minister was due to hold a Cobra meeting this morning.
Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary, confirmed the UK would be “announcing new sanctions on Russia in response to their breach of international law and attack on Ukraine’s sovereignty”.
The Biden administration ordered all remaining state department personnel out of Ukraine to Poland. They had previously evacuated staff from Kyiv to the western city of Lviv.
A senior official told a White House briefing: “This was a speech to the Russian people to justify a war. We believe this made clear his true intentions. He made clear he views Ukraine historically as part of Russia.”
Ukraine requested a meeting of the UN security council to address the threat of a Russian invasion, citing security assurances it received in return for giving up its Soviet-era nuclear stockpile.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, called an emergency meeting of the country’s security council. He said on Twitter he had spoken to Joe Biden, the US President, Mr Johnson, and the leaders of France and Germany to discuss a response.
Mr Johnson said the move was “plainly in breach of international law, it’s a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine”.
“It is a repudiation of the Minsk process and Minsk agreements, and I think it’s a very ill omen and a very dark sign,” he said outside Downing Street.
Mr Biden will soon announce sanctions against anyone who trades with
‘It will be a war waged by Russia on the Ukrainian people to repress them, to crush them, to harm them’
the separatists in Dontesk and Luhansk, the White House said. Spokesman Jen Psaki said the US would also announce “additional measures related to today’s blatant violation of Russia’s international commitments”. But it was not clear whether that would include the “devastating” package of sanctions Mr Biden has promised if Russia actually invades.
The EU last night agreed a “limited” package of sanctions that will target those “responsible” for the recognition of the separatist regions. Some policymakers have argued that the most powerful sanctions should be held in reserve until Russian troops cross the border.
Videos circulating online late last night appeared to show a convoy of Russian military vehicles near the breakaway region of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. However, The Telegraph could not verify the footage.
An eyewitness told independent Russian news agency Interfax that two columns of armoured vehicles had been seen inside the Donetsk People’s Republic.
However, a senior Biden administration official said that Russian forces heading into breakaway regions would not represent a further invasion of Ukraine.
“Russian troops moving into Donbas would not itself be a new step,” they said. “Russia has had forces in the region for the past eight years. We will continue diplomacy until the tanks roll.”
In France President Emmanuel Macron, who earlier in the day tried to avert the war by inviting Mr Putin to have a summit with Mr Biden to discuss intentional security, called an emergency national security meeting.
Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of Nato, said he “condemned” the recognition. It came as Russian troops massed on Ukraine’s border were moving to tactical start lines in preparation for the start of offensive operations.
The EU last night agreed a “limited” package of sanctions that will target those “responsible” for the recognition of the separatist regions.
A Western security official said units on all of Russia’s suspected axes of invasion had gone from being “positioned” to “poised” to attack. The official said: “All the indications we see is for a largescale invasion, using multiple axes with a series of objectives.”
Jake Sullivan, US national security adviser, told NBC news that a Russian invasion of its neighbour would be an “extremely violent” operation followed by a brutal occupation.
“It will be a war waged by Russia on the Ukrainian people to repress them, to crush them, to harm them,” the White House official said.
Last night, it was reported that US officials have discussed plans with the Ukrainian government for Mr Zelensky to leave Kyiv in the event of a Russian invasion.