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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky forcefully demanded stronger actions from world leaders on Saturday as the threat of full-scale invasion intensified amid increased shelling in the eastern separatist regions of his country. Zelensky also called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet him and seek a diplomatic resolution to the crisis.
U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that Russia could stage an attack from Kyiv’s forces on the separatist-held territories to justify Moscow’s invasion. State Department spokesman Ned Price expressed skepticism Saturday about Russian reports of a car bomb in a separatist-controlled region in eastern Ukraine.
The sharp upswing in firing from the separatists’ side over the past three days has shaken even the war-weary residents of eastern Ukraine, who have grappled with violence since Russia began supporting separatists in the disputed region in 2014, the same year it annexed Crimea from its neighbor. Russia on Saturday said at least two shells fired from a government-held part of the area purportedly landed across the border — claims Ukraine vehemently rebutted.
Here’s what to know
Car bombing claims are more evidence of Russian disinformation, U.S. official says
Return to menuState Department spokesman Ned Price expressed skepticism Saturday about Russian reports of a car bombing in a separatist-controlled region in eastern Ukraine, pointing to evidence of continued Russian disinformation campaigns to fabricate a pretext for an invasion of Ukraine.
Russian-backed news agencies said the vehicle belonged to a top official in a separatist group. The vehicle was unoccupied at the time, and nobody was hurt in the explosion, Reuters reported.
“We are seeing more evidence of Russian disinformation being used as pretext for a potential Russian attack on Ukraine,” Price wrote on Twitter on Saturday. “Today, locals in Donetsk reported calm despite Russian claims of a car bomb.”
We are seeing more evidence of Russian disinformation being used as pretext for a potential Russian attack on Ukraine. Today, locals in Donetsk reported calm despite Russian claims of a car bomb. https://t.co/TpxzqDUJAo
— Ned Price (@StateDeptSpox) February 19, 2022President Biden said Friday that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, has “made the decision” to strike Ukraine, warning of Kremlin-orchestrated false-flag operations in the coming days as pretext for an attack. Speaking at a security conference in Munich on Saturday, Vice President Harris echoed those warnings.
“There is a playbook of Russian aggression,” Harris told the heads of state and government, foreign dignitaries and a large delegation from the United States. “And this playbook is too familiar for us all. Russia will plead ignorance and innocence. It will create a false pretext for invasion. And it will amass troops and firepower in plain sight.”
Even Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — who has previously expressed frustration that the grim predictions from U.S. military and intelligence officials about an imminent invasion are damaging Ukraine’s economy — on Saturday conceded that troops Putin had built up along the border were on the lookout for any exploitable provocation, and that “one shelling, one cannon fire, can lead to war.”
Zelensky rips the West for inaction amid increased shellings
Return to menuMUNICH — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky forcefully demanded stronger actions from world leaders as the threat of full-scale attack by Russia intensifies amid increased shelling in the eastern separatist regions of his country.
“The security architecture of our world is brittle, it is obsolete,” Zelensky said on Saturday, during a defiant speech at a security conference in Munich. He accused governments of “egotism,” “arrogance” and “irresponsibility” as he urged Western leaders to publicly state their plans for sanctions on Russia, saying that after the war begins would be too late.
“Action is needed,” he insisted, adding that “this is not about war in Ukraine, this is about war in Europe.”
Zelensky’s rebuke of Kyiv’s allies comes as the United States is sounding its most dire warnings yet about the likelihood of a resumed Russian invasion of Ukraine, and as fresh shelling prompts new turmoil — and finger-pointing — in the country’s east.
Mekhennet and Hudson reported from Munich, and Demirjian and Nakashima reported from Washington.
Why might Russia want to invade Ukraine?
Return to menuWill he or won’t he?
That’s the question the world is asking about whether Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to invade Ukraine.
U.S. officials have said that a full-scale invasion by Russian troops is imminent. In a televised address Friday, President Biden said that he was “convinced” Putin had made the decision to invade and would attack in a matter of days.
Here’s what we know about why Russia might want to invade Ukraine.
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