British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to recognize the independence of two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine a ‘flagrant violation of the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine’
A Reuters witness saw unusually large columns of military harware moving through the breakaway city of Donetsk after Putin told Russia's defence ministry to send forces into the two regions to "keep the peace" in a decree issued shortly after announcing recognition for Russian-backed separatists there.
Defying Western warnings against such a move, Putin had announced his decision in phone calls to the leaders of Germany and France earlier, both of whom voiced disappointment, the Kremlin said. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the executive order "is designed to prevent Russia from profiting off of this blatant violation of international law."
In his address, Putin delved into history as far back as the Ottoman empire and as recent as the tensions over NATO's eastward expansion. His demands that Ukraine drop its long-term goal of joining the Atlantic military alliance have been repeatedly rebuffed by Kyiv and NATO states.
But recognition of the separatist-held areas paved the way for Putin to send military forces there, arguing that he was intervening as an ally to protect the separtists against Ukrainian forces. Both developments fit a pattern repeatedly predicted by Western governments, who accuse Russia of preparing to fabricate a pretext to invade by blaming Kyiv for attacks and relying on pleas for help from separatist proxies.Biden reaffirmed support for Ukraine's sovereignty in a call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and also spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron and Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
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