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As he announced fresh economic penalties against Russia on Tuesday, President Joe Biden claimed the world is watching “the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
Biden’s remarks came after Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered a fiery address to the Russian public on Monday evening, declaring his recognition of the independence of two Russia-backed separatist areas in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region: the self-proclaimed People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (DNR and LNR), prompting a slew of sanctions from Western countries, including Germany, halting approval of a major gas pipeline from Russia.
While the US estimates that 190,000 Russian troops and separatist forces are massed along Ukraine’s borders, Russia has denied any involvement and reaffirmed Tuesday its demand that Ukraine commits never to join NATO.
Russian-controlled separatists say two big “terrorist assaults” occurred on their turf Tuesday night, as the separatists and Russia work to build a pretext for a possible Russian strike.
The separatists said explosions occurred near a TV tower and a trolley bus station, and they later released footage purportedly showing rescue workers inspecting the damage.
The assertions are exceedingly dubious, and they come amid a slew of false tales of alleged Ukrainian strikes that have been quickly refuted.
The accusations came as Ukraine released footage showing rebel artillery fire striking a community called Chastiya, which translates as “happiness,” on the Ukrainian side of the battlefield. Rockets appear to strike home in the footage.
Yesterday, artillery shelling also struck a neighboring power facility.
The Russian-controlled rebels appear to have increased their fire on Ukrainian positions in the intention of inciting retaliation and giving the impression of a wider escalation.
