Russian President Vladimir Putin presided over a function in Kremlin To connect the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions Ukraine,
‘Citizens Forever’
“I want the authorities of Kyiv and their rightful masters in the West to listen to me. People living in Luhansk and Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhya are becoming our citizens. They came back in 2014 and returned to the negotiating table. We are ready for it … but we will not discuss the choice of people in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson. It did Russia will not betray them.
In a speech filled with hostility to the West, putin Said that the US had created a “job” by using nuclear weapons against Japan at the end of World War II. Fears of nuclear war have risen since Putin said last week that he was “not cheating” when he said Russia was ready to use nuclear weapons to defend its territory.
He said Russia would use “all power and all means” at its disposal to defend its new lands from attacks from the West or Ukraine.
Putin is doubling
An official merger was expected after votes in the Russian-occupied territories concluded on Tuesday. Moscow claimed that residents overwhelmingly supported that their territories should formally become part of Russia.
The occupation of Moscow’s territory confirms that President Vladimir Putin is doubling down on his war against Russia’s neighbor, despite suffering a major military backlash this month.
The West denounced the referendums as “illegal and rigged”, saying they were explicitly organized by the Kremlin. United Nations chief Antonio Guterres Said it was a “dangerous escalation” that would jeopardize the prospects of peace.
How much Ukrainian territory does Russia control
With the formal annexation of Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Donetsk and Luhansk, about 15% of Ukraine’s territory would come under Russian control.
Notably, Russia does not fully control the territories because Ukraine’s military has reclaimed some territory that Moscow had previously occupied.
In terms of actual land area, Russia would control 90,000 square kilometers (34,750 sq mi) of Ukraine’s total area. It is roughly the size of countries like Portugal or Jordan.
If we also consider Crimea, which was annexed in 2014, Russia will control 107,000 sq km of territory that once belonged to Ukraine.
With the latest merger, Putin is claiming about 15% of Ukraine’s land area, making the move the largest forcible occupation in Europe since World War II.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kailas said that Russia was trying to rewrite the map of Europe and added that the enclosed land area was equal to “Austria and Belgium combined. Or Denmark, Belgium and Netherlands combined. Or 30% of Germany”. .
It is also about half the size of the United Kingdom.
A little history of the area
In a recent speech, President Vladimir Putin said that his aim was to “liberate” Ukraine’s industrial heartland, the Donbass region, adding that most people there did not want to return to Ukraine’s “yoke”. .
Before and during the war, Putin often brought up the emotional aspect of how the region shares long historical and cultural ties with Russia. He considers all Luhansk and Donetsk (which together make up the Donbass) independent of Ukraine.
Following Russia’s annexation of Crimea, its proxy forces occupied more than a third of Ukraine’s east in a war that never ended.
Like the Crimean Peninsula, Luhansk and Donetsk are regions where a large proportion of the population speaks Russian and is ethnically Russian.
After the Orange Revolution of 2004, and the Maidan protests of 2013 and 2014, it was in these parts of Ukraine where opposition to Ukraine turned more to the west.
Russia’s move to swallow four regions will now set the stage for Moscow to pursue the war after Ukrainian successes.
It will also give Putin a sense of accomplishment after recent military setbacks caused by the slow progress of the invasion and the spirited defense imposed by Ukrainian forces.
(with inputs from agencies)
watch Russia occupied 4 Ukrainian territories