Putin recognizes independence of Ukraine breakaway regions

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday recognized as independent two breakaway territories in eastern Ukraine, marking a sharp escalation in tensions between Moscow and the West. 

In signing the decrees recognizing the Donetsk Peoples Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic, Putin rejected diplomatic efforts to cease fighting and pledged more assistance to separatists battling Ukrainian forces. 

“I deem it necessary to make a decision that should have been made a long time ago, to immediately recognize the independence and sovereignty of the Donetsk Peoples Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic,” Putin said in a speech from Moscow, in translated remarks.

“I would request the federal assembly to back this decision and ratify the agreement of friendship and mutual help with both republics.”

Putin made the announcement at the end of a winding speech that set out his vision of a Ukraine that has historically been part of Russia and is now under the control of the West. He also used the occasion to fire off a litany of accusations against Ukraine, the U.S. and Western allies, coupled with a sharp demand for Kyiv to “stop hostilities” and a rejection of the authority of the Ukrainian government as having been established in a “coup” following the 2014 revolution in the country.

He was joined in Moscow for a signing ceremony by the self-declared heads of two territories and said the documents were to ratify an agreement of “friendship” and mutual aid. 

“Those who seize the power and keep the power in Kyiv, we demand to stop hostilities immediately, otherwise, all the responsibility for the possible continuation of the bloodbath will be on the consciousness of the regime that is ruling in Kyiv. By declaring these decisions, I’m confident that I will have support of all the patriotic forces of Russia,” Putin said.  

The Russian president’s actions on Monday prompted a quick response from the Biden administration, with White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki issuing a statement that the U.S. was preparing to immediately imposing sanctions.

“We have anticipated a move like this from Russia and are ready to respond immediately,” Psaki said in a statement, adding that the sanctions include prohibiting new investment, trade and financing by U.S. persons to, from, or in the “so-called DNR [Donetsk] and LNR [Luhansk] regions of Ukraine.”

Additional measures are expected to be announced, she added.

U.S. allies also rejected Putin’s move, with the Kremlin referencing pushback from France and Germany in a phone call with the Russian leader where he informed them of his decision to recognize the separatists’ regions as independent. 

“The president of France and the Federal Chancellor of Germany expressed their disappointment with this development. At the same time, they indicated their readiness to continue contacts,” the Kremlin said in a statement.  

Putin set up his announcement Monday by earlier presiding over a public and highly choreographed meeting of the Russian National Security Council where members expressed near unanimity for the Kremlin to recognize the territories as independent. 

The Russian president said he had convened the meeting in response to requests from the self-declared leaders of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions requesting Moscow recognize their independence, and a resolution passed in the Russian State Duma supporting Moscow conferring independence. 

The Biden administration had earlier warned against Putin making such a move, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying the U.S. would impose a “swift and firm response” if the Kremlin recognized independence and that it would be viewed as a rejection of the Minsk agreements, a diplomatic framework established in 2015 aimed at ending the fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas, where an estimated 15,000 people have been killed.

A White House official said Monday that President Biden was meeting with his national security team to discuss the developments related to Russia and Ukraine, with reports of Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley at the White House. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter that he had spoken with French President Emanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Sholz following Putin’s security council meeting, and convened a meeting of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council. 

Fighting has escalated in the Donbas in recent days, with U.S., Ukrainian and other European officials placing blame on Russian-backed separatists for provoking violence, including the shelling of a kindergarten in the region, and praising Ukrainian forces for restraint. 

The increase in fighting is coupled with warnings from the U.S. and its allies and partners that Russia seeks to manufacture a “false-flag” operation to create a pretext for Russia to invade Ukraine and would launch a large-scale invasion with nearly 200,000 troops that includes removing the Ukrainian government in Kyiv.  

Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas tweeted earlier on Monday that recognizing the breakaway regions “would be a serious escalation by the Kremlin.” 

“It would be a clear and grave violation of international law and the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Donetsk and Luhansk are and will be part of Ukraine,” she wrote on Twitter. “This decision would also end the Minsk agreements. By saying ‘no’ to a political solution based on the Minsk agreements, the Kremlin shuts the door on diplomacy and creates an excuse for war.”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called Putin’s move a “breach of international law” and a “flagrant violation of the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine,” during a press conference.

Johnson further said the move showed Moscow rejecting diplomacy in the format of the Minsk agreements and “it’s a very ill omen and a very dark sign, and it certainly is yet another indication that things are moving in the wrong direction in Ukraine.” 

“We will continue to think about what more we can do support Ukraine in what is clearly a very, very dark and difficult time,” the prime minister said.   

European Union President Ursula Von der Leyen echoed Johnson’s condemnations and said the E.U. and its partners will “react with unity, firmness and with determination in solidarity with Ukraine.”

Evelyn Farkas, who served as deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia during the Obama administration, said recognition of the Donbas as independent may trigger some sanctions but that more devastating consequences would be reserved to be used against military action. 

“I think the Biden people have been pretty clear that it is military action they are looking for to include cyber and little green men,” Farkas said, but added that recognition could be a prelude to using armed force. 

“The reality is, if he goes ahead and recognizes them, he’s likely to send more forces in and that’s likely to trigger sanctions,” she said, likening it to Russia sending troops into Georgie in 2008 after recognizing separtist territories in the north-eastern and central part of that country as independent. 

Michael McFaul, who served as U.S. ambassador to Russia during the Obama administration, wrote on Twitter that Putin’s recognition of Luhansk and Donetsk is likely an opening salvo against Ukraine. 

“After Putin recognizes Donetsk and Luhansk, Zelensky will have to respond, right? And if he does, then Putin can justify invading as a reaction to Ukrainian ‘aggression’ and ‘protection’ of their new allies,” he tweeted.

Morgan Chalfant contributed to this report. Updated at 3:42 p.m.