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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday said Russia had approved an offensive against Ukraine and said Russian President Vladimir Putin had not replied to his invitation to hold talks. France meanwhile became the latest Western nation to call on its citizens to leave Ukraine “without delay,” amid mounting concerns that Russia is preparing a full-scale attack. Follow the latest updates on our liveblog below.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky released an emotional video address early Thursday morning local time, appealing to Russians not to support a “major war in Europe.” Zelensky said Russia had approved an offensive against Ukraine, with nearly 200,000 troops stationed on the border, and said Russian President Vladimir Putin had not replied to his invitation to hold talks.
- France late Wednesday became the latest Western nation to call on its citizens to leave Ukraine “without delay.”
- The EU on Wednesday imposed sanctions on Russia’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu and military chiefs as part of a package of measures over the Kremlin’s recognition of two separatist Ukrainian regions as independent.
- Rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine asked Moscow for military help against Kyiv, the Kremlin announced late Wednesday, in a move that opens the door for massed Russian troops to move in.
- Earlier Wednesday, the White House said US President Joe Biden has no intention of sending troops to fight in Ukraine, and Ukraine’s parliament imposed a national state of emergency aimed at helping forge a response to the threat of a Russian invasion. Read a recap here.
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(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS, AFP and AP)
Source : france24
