NATO’s Secretary General have said that there is every indication that Russia is continuing to plan for a full-scale attack of Ukraine.
Jens Stoltenberg, said. that Russia has not stopped planning for a full-scale invasion of Ukraine since recognising the independence of separatist enclaves,
Earlier Boris Johnson announced the first tranche of sanctions against Russia following the Kremlin’s decision to move troops into the separatist held parts of Ukraine overnight
The Prime Minister told MP’s that any peace process could be vain
“If the worst happens then a European nation of 44 million men women and children would become the target of a full-scale war of aggression waged without a shred of justification.” adding that the overnight move could well be seen as the first stage of a full invasion of the country
Five Russian banks, and three high net-worth individuals, are being sanctioned.
Any assets they hold in the UK will be frozen, and the individuals will be banned from coming to the UK.
Meanwhile German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said he has ordered the withdrawal of a key document needed for certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline after Russia’s incursion into eastern Ukraine.
President Putin has sent in what he calls ‘peace keeping troops’ into the separatist-held parts of eastern Ukraine in what has been described by the West as the start of the invasion of the country
It followed the signing a decree recognising the independence of the self-declared republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.
In an hour-long speech last night, Putin raged against Kyiv’s growing security ties with the West and referred to Russia having been “robbed” during the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Mr Putin accused the Ukrainian government of “genocide” and said it was sure to seek nuclear weapons with the assistance of the West, which he accused of holding a “knife to the throat” of Russia as he called Ukraine a US colony with a “puppet regime”.
Speaking this morning the Health Secretary described the move as “a huge moment for Europe, this a very dark morning”
“It’s clear from what we have already seen and found out today that the Russians and President Putin have decided to attack the sovereignty of Ukraine and its territorial integrity,” Mr Javid told Kay Burley on Sky News
A witness saw tanks and other military hardware on the outskirts of Donetsk, the capital of one of two breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine,
The health secretary urged any British citizens remaining in Ukraine to leave the country while commercial flights are still available.
