Meeting of UK's Cobra committee, underway in Downing Street
A meeting of the UK's emergency Cobra committee is underway in 10 Downing Street.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been joined by senior security officials, including Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, to assess the impact of Russia's decision to recognize separatist regions of Ukraine overnight.
It is expected that a range of sanctions will be discussed, before British MPs are asked to rubber stamp, what a spokesperson for the prime minister called, “a significant package of sanctions” later today.
The sanctions are expected to be the first tranche of punitive measures imposed on Russia, with a further package anticipated if Moscow invades Ukraine.
Ministers are also expected to discuss the domestic implications of the proposed measures, including moves to ensure the resilience of the energy market.
Latest developments on the Ukraine-Russia crisis
If you're just joining us, here’s a quick wrap-up of what’s taken place in the last few hours:
- Russian President Vladimir Putin has formally recognized two Russian-backed separatist-controlled regions in Ukraine
- He said he would send Russian troops to those regions - Luhansk and Donetsk - raising fears that this could mark the start of a military incursion
- Putin says those troops will be completing “peacekeeping” functions but the US representative at the UN described that as “nonsense”. The US believes Putin is ready to invade.
- The UN Security Council held an urgent late night meeting in New York following Putin's speech, where multiple nations called for peace and diplomacy efforts to avoid a war
- Russia’s ambassador said the country was open to diplomatic solutions but also repeated Putin’s accusations blaming Ukraine for escalating aggression. Ukraine has strongly denied these
- Analysts say Putin in his fiery speech on Monday laid out the rhetorical groundwork for potential military action
- He claimed, falsely, that Ukraine had no history of being a true nation and the country had been created by Russia
- He also accused Ukraine of being a puppet of the US, and said the Western military alliance NATO was threatening’s Russia’s security
- Ukraine’s President Zelensky, in his own response, said Ukraine was not afraid and would not yield
- The US has flagged it will announce further measures against Russia on Tuesday Article share tools
Australia embassy staff evacuated to Romania and Poland
Australia's embassy staff and officials have been told to leave Ukraine, according to a statement from Foreign Minister Marisa Payne.
The country's embassy and operations in the Ukrainian city of Lviv are temporarily closed, the minister said.
Staff have been sent to Romania and eastern Poland to help Australians trying to leave Ukraine.
It comes after the US similarly relocated its diplomats from Lviv to Poland, citing the security situation.
Shock and determination on Kyiv's streets
As news of Russia's move to recognize the rebel-held areas hit the streets of Kyiv, many in the Ukrainian capital were in disbelief. Some stressed they were ready to defend the country if needed.
"I am very shocked," a 22-year-old cook originally from Donetsk, the capital of one of the two rebel areas, told AFP news agency.
Artem Ivaschenko described the recognition decision as the "scariest news" since he had fled the region in 2014.
"I live here, I already lost a part of my homeland, it was taken away, so I will protect it," Artem added.
Maria Levchyshchyna, another Kyiv resident, told the Associated Press: "Why should Russia recognize [the rebel-held areas]? If neighbours come to you and say, ‘This room will be ours,’ would you care about their opinion or not? It’s your flat, and it will be always your flat."
“Let them [Russians] recognise whatever they want. But in my view, it can also provoke a war, because normal people will fight for their country," the 48-year-old painter added.
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