PremiumRussian President Vladimir Putin ordered the deployment of troops to two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine after recognising them as independent on Monday, accelerating a crisis the West fears could unleash a major war.
The moves drew U.S. and European condemnation and vows of new sanctions although it was not immediately clear whether the Russian military action would be regarded by the West as the start of a fullscale invasion. The area was already controlled by Russian-backed separatists and Moscow in practice.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced the first wave of sanctions against Russia for what he said was the beginning of an invasion of Ukraine, and vowed steeper punishments ahead if Russia continues its aggression. The sanctions, among others things, target Russian banks and sovereign debt.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Western-brokered peace agreements seeking to end a conflict in eastern Ukraine no longer existed, after he recognised the independence of the ex-Soviet country's separatist regions.
"The Minsk agreements do not exist now, we recognised the DNR and LNR," Putin said, using the abbreviations for the separatist regions in Donetsk and Lugansk. He spoke after Russia's upper house of parliament granted him permission to use the Russian army outside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday said it's 'best' if Ukraine drops NATO bid and adopts neutrality.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that Russian forces continue to ready for a potential attack on Ukraine after Moscow recognised two separatist regions as independent.
"Every indication is that Russia continues to plan for a full-scale attack on Ukraine," Stoltenberg told a media conference.
"We see that more and more of the forces are moving out of the camps and are in combat formations and ready to strike."
Lawmakers gave Russian President Vladimir Putin permission to use military force outside the country on Tuesday — a move that could presage a broader attack on Ukraine after the U.S. said an invasion was already underway there.
Ukraine and its leader Volodymyr Zelensky are running out of options as they try to withstand Russian military advances that could shrink their country for the second time since 2014.
Ukraine urges West to supply arms to face Russia, minister says
US President Joe Biden will address the nation Tuesday on Russia's latest moves against Ukraine, the White House said.
The address at 2:00 pm (1900 GMT) will provide "an update on Russia and Ukraine," the White House said.
The White House on Tuesday began referring to Russian troop deployments in eastern Ukraine as an “invasion" after initially hesitating to use the term. This can result in the US levying severe sanctions against Moscow.
The White House welcomed Germany's decision to halt the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project meant to deliver Russian gas to Europe and said that US sanctions would be announced Tuesday.
President Joe Biden "made clear that if Russia invaded Ukraine, we would act with Germany to ensure Nord Stream 2 does not move forward. We have been in close consultations with Germany overnight and welcome their announcement. We will be following up with our own measures today," Press Secretary Jen Psaki tweeted.
Britain will impose sanctions on five Russian banks and three "very high-net worth individuals" following the deployment of troops to two Moscow-backed regions of Ukraine, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Tuesday.
Britain will use new powers approved by parliament to introduce pre-prepared sanctions on "Russian individuals and entities of strategic importance to the Kremlin", Johnson told parliament.
The sanctions will target Rossiya bank, IS bank, General bank, Promsvyazbank and Black Sea bank.
While Ukraine's airspace has been largely empty amid the crisis with Russia, a remotely piloted U.S. military vehicle called the RQ-4 Global Hawk has flown over the country in circles for hours at a time.
Over the past month, two of the spy planes have travelled on regular missions from the Mediterranean Sea to Ukraine, where they have navigated in repeated loops in the north and the east, according to Flightradar24.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that he does not plan to restore Russia's empire, a day after he ordered Russian troops to be sent to eastern Ukraine and questioned Ukraine's sovereignty.
"We predicted speculation that Russia plans to restore (its) empire within imperial borders," Putin said at a meeting with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev in the Kremlin, adding: "This absolutely does not correspond with reality".
The United States will announce potentially severe new sanctions and export controls against Russia on Tuesday in response to Moscow's decision to recognize two breakaway regions of Ukraine as independent and send troops there.
Germany's Olaf Scholz says the country is halting Nord Stream 2 project.
India's benchmark 10-year bond yield rose further in afternoon trade on Tuesday, while the rupee weakened, due to global risk aversion amid an escalation of tensions in Ukraine, which also pushed up oil prices close to $100 a barrel.
India's benchmark 10-year bond yield closed at at 6.75%, up 6 basis points from its previous close.
The partially convertible rupee closed at 74.8750 per dollar, weaker compared with its previous close of 74.5050.
Energy prices surged after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order to send what he called “peacekeeping forces" to the two breakaway areas of Ukraine that he officially recognized on Monday.
European natural gas led gains in commodities, jumping as much as 13%. Brent oil was closing in on $100 a barrel, and German power and coal prices rose. Russia’s move is a dramatic escalation in its standoff with the West over Ukraine, with the U.S. and the U.K. saying they plan to announce new sanctions as soon as Tuesday.
Here are some ways sanctions could target Russia:
BANKS & FINANCIAL FIRMS
Some smaller Russian state-owned banks are already under sanctions: Washington imposed curbs on Bank Rossiya in 2014 for its close ties to Kremlin officials.
According to sources, the Biden administration has prepared a sweeping measure to hurt the Russian economy which would cut the "correspondent" banking relationships between targeted Russian banks and U.S. banks that enable international payments.
INDIVIDUALS
Sanctioning persons via asset freezes and travel bans is a commonly used tool and the United States, the EU and Britain already have such sanctions in place against a number of Russian individuals.
CURBING CHIPS
The White House has told the U.S. chip industry to be ready for new restrictions on exports to Russia if Moscow attacks Ukraine, including potentially blocking Russia's access to global electronics supplies.
ENERGY CORPORATES & NORD STREAM 2
The United States and the EU already have sanctions in place on Russia's energy and defence sectors, with state-owned gas company Gazprom, its oil arm Gazpromneft and oil producers Lukoil, Rosneft and Surgutneftegaz facing various types of curbs on exports/imports and debt-raising.
Sanctions could be widened and deepened, with one possible option being to prevent companies settling in U.S. dollars.
SOVEREIGN DEBT
Access to Russian bonds has become increasingly restricted and sanctions could be tightened further, with a ban on secondary market trading of both new Eurobond and new Russian rouble bonds known as OFZs floated as an option.
Russia's decision to recognise two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine means that the Kremlin has taken another step towards the revival of the Soviet Union, Ukraine's Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Tuesday.
"The Kremlin has taken another step towards the revival of the Soviet Union. With the new Warsaw Pact and the new Berlin Wall," he said in a statement.
Ukraine demanded severe sanctions against Russia on Tuesday as Western diplomats debated whether Moscow's decision to deploy troops to rebel-held eastern Ukraine is enough to trigger massive economic punishment.
In a statement issued during a visit to Washington, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he was working with Kyiv's Western friends "to impose tough sanctions against the Russian Federation."
Russia moved quickly Tuesday to secure its hold on Ukraine's rebel regions following the recognition of their independence with legislation allowing the deployment of troops there in a challenge to Western governments, which are preparing to announce sanctions against Moscow.
The Indian embassy in Kyiv on Tuesday again advised students to temporarily leave Ukraine rather than wait for an official confirmation from universities amid the growing tensions in the region.
This latest advisory comes against the backdrop of Russia's decision to recognize the independence of breakaway regions Donetsk and Luhansk.
Moscow said Tuesday Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was still ready for talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, after President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine's two separatist regions.
"Even during the most difficult moments... we say: we are ready for negotiations," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in remarks aired on YouTube.
Moscow says still ready for talks with Blinken: foreign ministry
EU & UK will also announce sanctions on Russia today. US Has already announced that it would impose additional sanctions on Russia today
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the deployment of troops to two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine after recognising them as independent on Monday, accelerating a crisis the West fears could unleash a major war. Full story here
"Safety and security of civilians essential. More than 20,000 Indian students and nationals live and study in different parts of Ukraine. The well-being of Indians is of priority to us," India's Permanent Rep to United Nations TS Tirumurti said at UNSC meet on Ukraine.
Global equities slumped today while oil jumped to a seven-year high after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine. Read more here
The deployment of what Russia called a peacekeeping operation in eastern Ukraine is "nonsense" and Moscow's recognition of the breakaway regions as independent is part of its pretext for war, the United States told the U.N. Security Council on Monday.
Strongly condemning President Vladimir Putin’s decision to recognise the so-called “Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics" as “independent," US Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Monday said that this is a clear attack on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N. SAYS RUSSIAN PROXIES HAVE ALREADY 'DRAMATICALLY' INCREASED SHELLING AND ARTILLERY FIRE OVER THE WEEKEND.
The decision-making body of the United Nations, the UN Security Council, will hold an emergency meeting on Monday night at 9 p.m. New York time. The session will be open, meaning people will be allowed to listen in on the discussion. Expect a lively debate but not much more.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told the nation that Ukraine is “not afraid of anyone or anything."
He spoke during a chaotic day in which Russia appeared to be moving closer to an invasion, with President Vladimir Putin recognizing separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and then ordering forces there.
New York's West Texas Intermediate crude contract rose more than three percent on Tuesday as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops to deploy in separatist areas of Ukraine.
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