Vladimir Putin mulls independence of separatist Ukraine regions
India Today
Vladimir Putin convened a meeting with his top officials to consider recognising the independence of Russia-backed separatist regions in eastern Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin convened top officials Monday to consider recognising the independence of Russia-backed separatist regions in eastern Ukraine.
The meeting of the presidential Security Council comes amid Western fears that Russia could invade Ukraine any moment, using skirmishes in eastern Ukraine as a pretext for an attack.
Putin's statement follows televised statements by separatist leaders, who pleaded with Putin to recognise them as independent states and sign friendship treaties envisaging military aid to protect them from what they described as the ongoing Ukrainian military offensive. Russia's lower house made the same plea last week. Follow Russia Ukraine crisis LIVE Updates
Ukrainian authorities deny launching an offensive and accuse Russia of provocation amid intensifying shelling along the line of contact.
The Kremlin initially signalled its reluctance to make the move that would effectively shatter a 2015 peace deal for eastern Ukraine that marked a major diplomatic coup for Moscow, requiring Ukrainian authorities to offer a broad self-rule to the rebel regions.
Read | Why Russia wants Ukraine so badly
The US and Russian presidents tentatively agreed to meet in a last-ditch effort to stave off a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, even as sustained shelling continued Monday in a conflict in eastern Ukraine that Western powers fear could provide the spark for a broader war.
