BREAKING: Putin says he intends to recognize 2 Russian-controlled separatist regions in Eastern Ukraine -- watch ABC Special Report live here:
MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin in an address to the Russian people announced recognition of the two Russian-controlled separatist regions in eastern Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, the self-proclaimed People's Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, ABC News reported."I deem it necessary to make a decision that should have been made long ago," Putin said."I am confident I will have support of the people of Russia.
At a carefully orchestrated, pre-recorded meeting of Putin's Security Council, a stream of top Russian officials argued for recognizing the separatist regions' independence, though some suggested Putin didn't have to do it immediately. It came amid a spike in skirmishes in those regions that Western powers believe Russia could use as a pretext for an attack on the western-looking democracy that has defied Moscow's attempts to pull it back into its orbit.
Even as the diplomatic efforts inched forward, potential flashpoints multiplied. Sustained shelling continued Monday in Ukraine's east. Unusually, Russia said it had fended off an"incursion" from Ukraine - which Ukrainian officials denied. And Russia decided to prolong military drills in Belarus, which could offer a staging ground for an attack on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.
Earlier Monday, leaders of the regions released televised statements pleading with Putin to recognize them and sign treaties that would allow for military aid to protect them from what they described as an ongoing Ukrainian military offensive. Russia's lower house of parliament made the same plea last week.
Macron's office said both leaders had"accepted the principle of such a summit," to be followed by a broader meeting that would include other"relevant stakeholders to discuss security and strategic stability in Europe." "So when President Macron asked President Biden yesterday if he was prepared in principle to meet with President Putin, if Russia did not invade, of course President Biden said yes," he told NBC's"Today" show on Monday."But every indication we see on the ground right now in terms of the disposition of Russian forces is that they are, in fact, getting prepared for a major attack on Ukraine.
While Russia-backed separatists have charged that Ukrainian forces were firing on residential areas, Associated Press journalists reporting from several towns and villages in Ukrainian-held territory along the line of contact have not witnessed any notable escalation from the Ukrainian side and have documented signs of intensified shelling by the separatists that destroyed homes and ripped up roads.
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