Putin orders troops to invade eastern Ukraine

[Forerunner]

Putin orders troops to eastern Ukraine, drawing condemnation at emergency U.N. meeting

The Russian president's recognition of two breakaway regions was seen by the United States and its European allies as a dramatic provocation.

www.nbcnews.com

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine on Monday, just hours after he formally recognized the independence of two Moscow-backed breakaway regions in eastern part of the country.

The order will likely be seen as another escalation of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, on a day when tensions rose as Putin moved forward with the formal recognition of a breakaway region and delivered a lengthy speech about the relationship between the two nations.

Putin framed the troop movement as a "peacekeeping" effort in both regions. His decision to recognize both regions was seen by the United States and its European allies as a dramatic provocation and part of a pretext to invade Ukraine and led to the U.S. and European Union announcing sanctions.

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Many experts believed Moscow's formal recognition would effectively scuttle a previous ceasefire agreement that some Western allies hoped could provide a route out of the crisis.

In a wide-ranging televised speech Monday evening, Putin described Ukraine as a historical part of Russia that was illegitimately taken from Moscow and is now run by a "puppet regime" controlled by the U.S. and the West.

He then signed a decree formally recognizing the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic, which have been controlled by Russian-backed separatists since 2014.

Alongside him were Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik, heads of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics.

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Soon after Putin finished his address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he spoke with President Joe Biden Monday afternoon and would soon speak with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. A White House official said the call lasted about 35 minutes.

In a readout of Biden's call with Zelenskyy, the White House said Biden "strongly condemned Putin's decision to purportedly recognize the 'independence' of" Donetsk and Luhansk.

"President Biden reiterated that the United States would respond swiftly and decisively, in lock-step with its Allies and partners, to further Russian aggression against Ukraine," the White House continued.

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The European Union condemned "in the strongest possible terms" Putin's recognition of the two regions in eastern Ukraine.

"This step is a blatant violation of international law as well as of the Minsk agreements," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel said in a joint statement. "The Union will react with sanctions against those involved in this illegal act."

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Meanwhile, Biden administration officials have discussed plans with the Ukrainian government for Zelenskyy to leave Kyiv in the event of a Russian invasion, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

Under a plan that's been discussed, Zelenskyy would relocate to Lviv in western Ukraine, about 50 miles from the Polish border, the people familiar with the discussions said.

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[CitizenVectron]

A sad day for the world. Now we unfortunately wait to see if Russia will only take the eastern quarter of the country, or if the invasion is targeted at all of Ukraine.

I've only ever visited central and western Ukraine (Kyiv, Lviv, Ternopil, Chernivtsi, etc), but it's a beautiful country with a beautiful people, and, contrary to what Putin claims, is culturally very distinct from Russia, and very much its own nation. My family immigrated from near Ternopil to Canada in the 1890s.

 

[GYODX]

An alternative title would be "Russia has invaded Ukraine."

 

[Mórríoghain]

What seems to be the most likely scenario? Annexation of those lands and small-scale firefights or a full Russia / Ukraine war?

 

[CitizenVectron]

An alternative title would be "Russia has invaded Ukraine."

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So far it appears that Russian troops are only entering Donetsk and Luhansk, the regions that Russia already effectively controls (and has now recognized as independent republics). But, it's also likely that they will move to take further area that Ukraine still controls, soon enough.

 

[Muse98]

What seems to be the most likely scenario? Annexation of those lands and small-scale firefights or a full Russia / Ukraine war?

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Ukraine recognizes the Eastern parts of Ukraine that Russia is occupying as part of Ukraine so does NATO.

 

[ragolliangatan]

A sad day for the world. Now we unfortunately wait to see if Russia will only take the eastern quarter of the country, or if the invasion is targeted at all of Ukraine.

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the target is the whole of Ukraine- they won't stop at just the eastern regions. His speech was very clear- he doesn't believe Ukraine is a country- but a part of Russia.

 

[antonz]

What seems to be the most likely scenario? Annexation of those lands and small-scale firefights or a full Russia / Ukraine war?

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Its giving pretext for full invasion. The "Rebels" only hold like 1/3 of the Land they officially claim. So Russia is coming in to help enforce their claims which means Ukraine is in the way since Ukraine actually holds most of the "captured" lands.

 

[JonnyDBrit]

What seems to be the most likely scenario? Annexation of those lands and small-scale firefights or a full Russia / Ukraine war?

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Unclear. The most immediate thing would appear to be trying to coerce - whether by threat or by actual force - the Ukrainian frontline to the nominal limits of the separatist republics, where currently Ukrainian forces are parked halfway inside, just beyond the major cities

 

[Deaf Spacker]

So much for 'It's sabre rattling'.

For fucks sake.

 

[Muse98]

So far it appears that Russian troops are only entering Donetsk and Luhansk, the regions that Russia already effectively controls (and has now recognized as independent republics). But, it's also likely that they will move to take further area from Ukraine proper (at least the areas claimed by LNR and DNR) soon enough.

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If they already control those parts why even send in troops?

Putin is aiming for Kiev.

 

[Griffith]

I'm going to be very blunt here: this is one of the worst titled threads I've ever seen on Era. This thread deserves a more honest title. This is an invasion.

Edit: thank you to whoever edited the thread title to reflect what's actually happening

 

[El Bombastico]

God, stay safe, Ukraine-ERA.

 

[GYODX]

So far it appears that Russian troops are only entering Donetsk and Luhansk, the regions that Russia already effectively controls (and has now recognized as independent republics). But, it's also likely that they will move to take further area from Ukraine proper (at least the areas claimed by LNR and DNR) soon enough.

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Eastern Ukraine *is* Ukraine proper. Insinuating the contrary is parroting Russian propaganda, probably unwittingly.

 

[Infinity Times Two]

"We're not invading Ukraine"

*Recognizes two territories as Not Ukraine and sends army in*

Real clever…

 

[Streusel]

"peacekeeping" operations

 

[GrantDaNasty]

I completely understand being anti-war, and we shouldn't embolden the military-industrial complex, but NO SUPERPOWER should be bullying smaller nations or re-drawing maps via force.

Anyone that genuinely thinks Russia has any right on this issue can eat my ass straight-up.

 

[Rangerx]

The real test will be if and when Russian troops move past the ceasefire line. If that happens its all out war.

 

[ThereAreFourNaan]

An alternative title would be "Russia has invaded Ukraine."

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Well, "Russia has officially invaded Ukraine", as opposed to the unofficial invasions in 2014.

 

[Ryuelli]

What seems to be the most likely scenario? Annexation of those lands and small-scale firefights or a full Russia / Ukraine war?

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If the world didn't really do anything to stop Russia from occupying Crimea, and world doesn't do much to stop Russia from occupying Donetsk and Luhansk, why would he stop there?

I admittedly don't know a whole lot about this part of the world, but if Russia can just keep waltzing into old soviet territories every few years without any real repercussions, why would Putin stop? Dude made it pretty clear in his speech today that he doesn't even see Ukraine as a country that should exist in the first place.

I'm not really sure what the answer is, but whatever has happened since 2014 doesn't seem to have done much to change Putin's goals.

 

[StarStorm]

So its begun. The more accurate title is "Russia invades Ukraine."

 

[CitizenVectron]

Eastern Ukraine *is* Ukraine proper. Insinuating the contrary is parroting Russian propaganda, probably unwittingly.

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I guarantee I am not parroting it. I simply meant the areas still actually controlled by Ukraine. I've edited my post to make that more clear.

 

[Deleted member 5865]

I thought this would all blow over, but I guess its really happening

 

[ivantod]

the target is the whole of Ukraine- they won't stop at just the eastern regions. His speech was very clear- he doesn't believe the Ukraine is a country- but a part of Russia.

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Please don't refer to it as "The Ukraine". The country is called just "Ukraine" and calling it "The Ukraine" comes from Soviet times when it was used to emphasize that it is not a country on its own. The problem is that when you say e.g. "in the Ukraine" it basically translates in Russian and other Slavic languages to something like "in the border regions"--which is the intent, to negate the existence of it as a country.

 

[GYODX]

I guarantee I am not parroting it. I simply meant the areas still actually controlled by Ukraine. I've edited my post to make that more clear.

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That's why I said unwittingly. The Kremlin is very effective at what they do. They manufacture new facts in the ground and then have us play and debate in terms of their newly manufactured reality, and we don't even realize it.

 

[B-Dubs]

This situation is fast moving and highly charged. In order to try and prevent things from becoming more heated than they need to be, the following rules will be strictly enforced from here on out:

There is to be no fearmongering over World War 3 or any other major source of conflict
There is a difference between advocating for the world at large to do better by the Ukrainian people and warmongering. If you cross it, you will be banned.
Any trolling, of any kind, will be severely punished
Any racism or Xenophobia will receive stricter bans than usual
ALL SOURCES MUST BE CHECKED BEFORE POSTING, DO NOT POST ANY FAKE LINKS OR NEWS. Please be sure to wait for confirmation from trustworthy news sources before sharing anything new.


Violating any of these guidelines will be met with no less than a 1 month ban from the site. These rules will hold for all threads on this conflict until further notice.

 

[TheHunter]

Russia invades the rest of Ukraine would be more accurate since they've been in Ukraine since 2014.

I'm sorry, "wayward well meaning patriots" have been in Ukraine. /sarcasm

 

[ragolliangatan]

Please don't refer to it as "The Ukraine". The country is called just "Ukraine" and calling it "The Ukraine" comes from Soviet times when it was used to emphasize that it is not a country on its own. The problem is that when you say e.g. "in the Ukraine" it basically translates in Russian and other Slavic languages to something like "in the border regions"--which is the intent, to negate the existence of it as a country.

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Thanks for pointing that out-I didn't mean offense- it wasn't intentional in the second part of my post- I'll correct it.

 

[Gay Bowser]

I'm going to be very blunt here: this is one of the worst titled threads I've ever seen on Era. This thread deserves a more honest title. This is an invasion.

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Truth. For the love of god, can we please get an edit. Have we learned nothing from four years of Trump to not just parrot quotes into headlines.

 

[CitizenVectron]

That's why I said unwittingly. The Kremlin is very effective at what they do. They manufacture new facts in the ground and then have us play and debate in terms of their newly manufactured reality, and we don't even realize it.

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As someone of Ukrainian descent who has been to Ukraine, I simply used a poor choice of words, I was not influenced by any Russian propaganda.

 

[ivantod]

Thanks for pointing that out-I didn't mean offense- it wasn't intentional in the second part of my post- I'll correct it.

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Absolutely no problem, I didn't think you were malicious at all!

You can read more about it here why not to call it "The Ukraine" which explains the history of the whole thing: https://time.com/12597/the-ukraine-or-ukraine/

 

[Maxim726x]

So... For anyone that has been keeping up with proposed sanctions- What happens now? Do these actions constitute and invasion (they clearly should, but) and are these sanctions severe enough to make any lasting impact in Russia?

 

[BringBackSonics]

Thinking of those in Europe and those with family and friends there.

I'm sorry

 

[Samaritan]

Thanks for making the new thread, more eyeballs will be on this situation now that there aren't 170 pages tied to it, but could we please change the title and call this what it is: Ukraine is being invaded by Russia, let's not mince words here.

 

[ParityBit]

Tagging to watch

 

[CitizenVectron]

I do think that if Russia moves past the current borders of the LNR and DNR then the post title should definitely be edited by mods to "Russia invades Ukraine."

 

[TheHunter]

Most likely Putin will try to use any defense or reaction from Ukrainian soldiers or civilians as justification for further aggression into Ukraine.

 

[HustleBun]

I thought this would go poorly and quickly. This is so much worse.

My mind is spinning over the loss of life, the continued hits on an already drowning world economy, fear of nuclear options. I hope everyone is as safe as possible. Take care of each other.

 

[Hetz]

Yeah, this is not a "peace keeping operation". Come on. How about the thread title actually reflect what has happened? Russia has invaded Ukraine.

 

[Bionicman]

So... For anyone that has been keeping up with proposed sanctions- What happens now? Do these actions constitute and invasion (they clearly should, but) and are these sanctions severe enough to make any lasting impact in Russia?

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Russian forces are inside areas that they've been since 2014, they aren't capturing new areas yet or enaging the Ukrainian army yet.

There's a very high probability that will soon change and Russia will look to securing the whole of the two rebel regions.

But until then the invasion hasn't started so no mother of all sanctions until then.

 

[JonnyDBrit]

So... For anyone that has been keeping up with proposed sanctions- What happens now? Do these actions constitute and invasion (they clearly should, but) and are these sanctions severe enough to make any lasting impact in Russia?

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There's an initial set of sanctions being prepped, including an executive order by President Biden to restrict investments and business with the Separatist Republics. Larger scale ones are still being finalised, and likely conditioned on whether Russian forces attempt to push against Ukrainian positions.

 

[Maxim726x]

I do think that if Russia moves past the current borders of the LNR and DNR then the post title should definitely be edited by mods to "Russia invades Ukraine."

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Ehh what would you call what we're seeing now?

Isn't it kinda semantics at that point?

 

[Mcfrank]

Why are we letting Putin's doublespeak dictate the thread title?

 

[Sei]

Sounds like an invasion, looks like an invasion. Those territories are recognized by the Ukraine and EU as part of the Ukraine.

I don't think the US should do anything, but the EU definitely should.

 

[Culex]

Seems like such an easy excuse that with Russian troops moving into the already semi-annexed areas of eastern Ukraine to just say "oopsies! Your Ukrainian troops are too close to us now, time to just invade all of Ukraine!"

 

[Maquiladora]

Most likely Putin will try to use any defense or reaction from Ukrainian soldiers or civilians as justification for further aggression into Ukraine.

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Yes this is all very carefully orchestrated and planned. Even the date is very symbolic.

 

[BringBackSonics]

This is Georgia 2008 all over again.

 

[TheHunter]

Why are we letting Putin's doublespeak dictate the thread title?

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Agreed.

There is nothing "peaceful" about any of this.

 

[Bionicman]

Yeah, this is not a "peace keeping operation". Come on. How about the thread title actually reflect what has happened? Russia has invaded Ukraine.

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Thread title is accurate so far, Russia hasn't invaded new territories, they're where they've been since 2014. Likely to change soon tho.

 

[Deleted member 14518]

Well shit. Thoughts are with Ukraine tonight.