A full military mobilization was ordered on Saturday by separatist leaders in eastern Ukraine amid rising tensions between Ukraine and Russia. Troops have also been placed on standby in the Kremlin-backed eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country looked to ‘peace’, US Vice President Kamala Harris said, the world is “at a defining moment in history.” Meanwhile, several European countries have asked citizens to leave Ukraine. Check out the latest development here.
- Ukraine’s military said Saturday that two soldiers were killed and four wounded in shelling by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, where violence erupted this week on fears it could trigger Russian military action.
- Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday that the world had arrived at a “decisive moment in history” as the Biden administration warned that a Russian invasion of Ukraine was highly likely in the coming days. “Let me be clear, I can say with absolute certainty: If Russia invades Ukraine further, the United States, along with our allies and partners, will incur significant and unprecedented economic costs,” Harris said.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Vice President Kamala Harris in Munich on Saturday and said her country was looking for “peace”. The president also said that Ukraine would not respond to provocations in the eastern Donbass region and would seek to establish peace through diplomacy.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he does not know what President Vladimir Putin wants from Ukraine, and is therefore seeking to meet him – an offer the Russian leader has so far rejected.
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he will make it impossible to raise funds in London if Russia attacks Ukraine. Johnson used a speech in Germany on Saturday to demand Western “unity” over Russia’s threats to Ukraine, warning that any invasion would result in a worldwide “shock”.
- The head of the EU’s executive commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said Moscow would have limited access to financial markets and high-tech goods under Western sanctions in the event that Russia invades Ukraine.
- Germany has asked its citizens to leave Ukraine “immediately” amid fears of a possible Russian invasion of the country in the coming days.
- Austria and France are also among European countries urging their citizens to leave Ukraine as soon as possible, reiterating or intensifying warnings from a week ago.
- Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an exercise by Strategic Nuclear Missile Forces on Saturday and Washington said a crowd of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine were “ready to attack”.
- China’s foreign minister on Saturday urged the West to respect Russia’s concerns over Ukraine and questioned whether NATO expansion to the east would guarantee peace. “All parties have the right to raise their concerns, while Russia’s justified concerns must also be respected and taken into account,” he said.
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