Dhe leader of the pro-Russian rebels in the self-proclaimed “People’s Republic” of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine has called for “general mobilization”. “Today I signed a decree on general mobilization,” said Denis Puschilin in a video message published on Saturday. He called on the reservists to “come to the military enrollment offices.” In addition, the Ukrainian army and the pro-Russian rebels accused each other of serious violations of the ceasefire.
Puschilin asserted in the video that his soldiers had thwarted attacks planned by Ukraine. The Ukrainian army continues its attacks. “Together we will win for all of us the victory we desire and deserve,” said the rebel leader. “We will protect the Donbas and the entire Russian people.”
In his speech, Pushilin urged civilians to flee to neighboring Russia. First, “women, children and the elderly” should be brought to safety, said the separatist chief. “A temporary departure will save you and your relatives’ lives.” Ukraine has repeatedly denied allegations that it intends to use force to retake areas controlled by pro-Russian rebels.
Biden’s clearest statement to date
US President Joe Biden accused Moscow on Friday of creating “false justification” for an invasion by making false claims about the situation in eastern Ukraine. It had previously been a “gambit” by the Kremlin to speak of a genocide against Russians in such cases. However, there is no evidence of the alleged Ukrainian offensive against the separatists in the east of the country. According to the US President, it also lacked any logic that after so many years of conflict Ukraine should try to retake the territories now of all times, since the country was surrounded by more than 150,000 Russian soldiers.
Biden also said in a televised White House address that he expects a Russian attack on the neighboring country in the “coming days”. He said he was “convinced” that Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had “already made” the decision to launch the attack. On Saturday, the Russian army plans to hold strategic weapons maneuvers under Putin’s supervision.
According to Biden, the US government also assumes that the Russian armed forces would target the Ukrainian capital Kiev, among other things. It was the clearest statement by the US President to date on Putin’s alleged plans for an attack. Previously, the US government had always stated that, in its estimation, the Russian President had not yet made a final decision on an attack.
A representative of the US Department of Defense has now said that between 40 and 50 percent of the Russian forces massed on the border with Ukraine have now “taken up an attack position”. Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin told ABC News that Putin had made preparations for a “successful invasion.” “I don’t think this is a bluff,” the defense secretary said.
But Biden doesn’t see the door for diplomacy completely closed. Moscow still has the choice between a “catastrophic and senseless war” and “diplomacy,” he said. Biden announced that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken would meet with Russia’s chief diplomat Sergei Lavrov in Europe on Thursday.
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