White House calls Russian moves on Ukraine an invasion
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(NewsNation Now) — Russian lawmakers on Tuesday authorized President Vladimir Putin to use military force outside the country — a move that could presage a broader attack on Ukraine after the U.S. said an invasion was already underway there.
Several European leaders said Russian troops rolled into rebel-held areas in eastern Ukraine after Putin recognized their independence. But it was unclear how large the deployment was, and Ukraine and its Western allies have long said Russian troops were fighting in the region, allegations that Moscow always denied.
Members of Russia’s upper house, the Federation Council, voted unanimously to allow Putin to use military force outside the country — effectively formalizing a Russian military deployment to the rebel regions, where an eight-year conflict has killed nearly 14,000 people.
Shortly after, Putin laid out three conditions to end the crisis that has threatened to plunge Europe back into war, raising the specter of massive casualties, energy shortages across the continent and economic chaos around the globe.
Putin said the crisis could be resolved if Kyiv recognizes Russia’s sovereignty over Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014, renounces its bid to join NATO and partially demilitarizes. The West has decried the annexation of Crimea as a violation of international law and has previously flatly rejected permanently barring Ukraine from NATO.
Asked whether he has sent any Russian troops into Ukraine and how far they could go, Putin responded: “I haven’t said that the troops will go there right now.” He added coyly that “it’s impossible to forecast a specific pattern of action –- it will depend on a concrete situation as it takes shape on the ground.”
World leaders are preparing Tuesday to hit his administration with sanctions as he heightened fears of war with legislation that would allow the deployment of troops to rebel-held regions of eastern Ukraine.
Germany made the first big move. It took steps to halt the process of certifying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia — a lucrative deal long sought by Moscow but criticized by the U.S. for increasing Europe’s reliance on Russian energy.
The rest of the European Union soon followed, with the first set of sanctions aimed at the 351 Russian lawmakers who voted for recognizing separatist regions in Ukraine, as well as 27 other Russian officials and institutions from the defense and banking world. They also sought to limit Moscow’s access to EU capital and financial markets.
Biden addressed the conflict Tuesday, announcing heavy financial sanctions against Russian banks and oligarchs, declaring that Moscow has flagrantly violated international law by it actions in Ukraine.
“They can no longer raise money from the West and cannot trade in its new debt on our markets, or European markets either,” Biden said.
Biden also said he was also moving additional U.S. troops to the Baltic states on NATO’s eastern flank.
He said more sanctions could be on the way if Putin proceeds further.
Biden on Monday signed an executive order that prohibits new investment, trade and financing by U.S. persons to, from, or in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic regions of Ukraine.
“To be clear: these measures are separate from and would be in addition to the swift and severe economic measures we have been preparing in coordination with allies and partners should Russia further invade Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki wrote in a statement announcing the executive order.
A State Department spokesperson told NewsNation Tuesday that Putin’s actions are “another indication that Russia is seeking war, not diplomacy.”
The spokesperson said the U.S. will “continue to consult with our Allies and partners in the coming hours on the way forward. As we have said, we are committed to finding a diplomatic resolution that avoids a brutal and costly conflict, but diplomacy cannot succeed unless Russia changes course.”
FILE – A sign reading “Nord Stream 2 Committed. Reliable. Safe.” hangs above a painted map of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline from Russia to Germany at the natural gas receiving station in the Lubmin industrial estate in Lubmin, Germany, Nov 16, 2021. Surging energy prices and fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine are making European leaders think hard about energy security — particularly their decades-old reliance on Moscow for natural gas. The crisis shows Europe’s vulnerability after years of limited progress in allowing affordable gas and electricity to flow across borders while diversifying suppliers and reaching climate goals. (Stefan Sauer/dpa via AP) 
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, chairs a Security Council meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. Putin has convened top officials to consider recognizing the independence of separatist regions in eastern Ukraine. Such a move would ratchet up tensions with the West amid fears that the Kremlin could launch an invasion of Ukraine imminently. (Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP) 
People wave Russian national flags celebrating the recognizing the independence in the center of Donetsk, the territory controlled by pro-Russian militants, eastern Ukraine, late Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. In a fast-moving political theater, Russian President Vladimir Putin has moved quickly to recognize the independence of separatist regions in eastern Ukraine in a show of defiance against the West amid fears of Russian invasion in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov) 
In this image provided by the United Nations, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield speaks during an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on Ukraine, at the U.N. headquarters, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022. (Evan Schneider/United Nations via AP) 
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the nation on a live TV broadcast in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. President Zelenskyy has told the nation that Ukraine is “not afraid of anyone or anything.” He spoke during a chaotic day in which Russia appeared to be moving closer to an invasion, with President Vladimir Putin recognizing separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and then ordering forces there.(Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP) 
People from the Donetsk region, the territory controlled by pro-Russia separatist governments in eastern Ukraine, leave a train to be taken to temporary residences in Nizhny Novgorod region, at the railway station in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. A long-feared Russian invasion of Ukraine appears to be imminent, if not already underway, with Russian President Vladimir Putin ordering forces into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine. (AP Photo/Roman Yarovitcyn) 
A woman carries a child as they are evacuated from the Donetsk region, the territory controlled by pro-Russia separatist government in eastern Ukraine, as they leave a train to be taken to temporary accommodations, at the railway station in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. A long-feared Russian invasion of Ukraine appears to be imminent, if not already underway, with Russian President Vladimir Putin ordering forces into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine. (AP Photo/Roman Yarovitcyn) 
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returns to Downing Street in London, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Johnson says the U.K. will introduce “immediate” economic sanctions against Russia, and warned that President Vladimir Putin is bent on “a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.” (AP Photo/David Cliff) 
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz waits for Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheal Martin at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn) 
In this handout photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, greets Estonian President Alar Karis during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP) 
In this image provided by the United Nations, the U.N. Security Council meets for an emergency session on Ukraine, Monday, Feb. 21, 2022, at the U.N. headquarters. (Evan Schneider/United Nations via AP) 
A woman pushes a wheelchair carrying an elderly woman holding a dog from pro-Russian separatists’ controlled territory to Ukrainian government controlled areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, the only crossing point open daily, in the Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Russia says its recognition of independence for areas in eastern Ukraine extends to territory currently held by Ukrainian forces. The statement Tuesday further raises the stakes amid Western fears that Moscow could follow up to Monday’s recognition of rebel regions with a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) 
FILE – Pipes at the landfall facilities of the ‘Nord Stream 2’ gas pipline are pictured in Lubmin, northern Germany, on Feb. 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File) 
German Bundeswehr soldiers of the NATO enhanced forward presence battalion waits to greet German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht upon his arrival at the Rukla military base some 100 kms (62.12 miles) west of the capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Germany is sending additional troops to Lithuania in response to Russia’s military build-up on the border with Ukraine and the worsening security situation in the Baltic states. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Putin signed a decree Monday recognizing the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states rather than parts of Ukraine, drawing swift condemnation from the West and fears it could unleash a major war.
Following his decision, Putin ushered more troops to the two breakaway regions to “keep the peace.” There was no word on the size of the force Putin was dispatching, but the decree said Russia now had the right to build military bases in the breakaway regions.
