Russian President Vladimir Putin told the leaders of France and Germany he plans to sign a decree recognising the two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent entities, the Kremlin said on Monday.
The French and German leaders voiced disappointment after hearing the decision, the Kremlin said in a readout of the phone calls.
The West has repeatedly warned Russia not to recognise the separatist regions in Donetsk and Luhansk, – a move that effectively buries a fragile peace process in the region.
Vladimir Putin has said Ukraine plans to create its own nuclear weapons, calling it an unacceptable move for Moscow.
Putin claimed that Ukraine sought to achieve it by using Soviet technology, in a televised address.
Vladimir Putin has said that Ukraine’s authorities are contaminated by virus of nationalism and corruption, bashing the neighbouring country’s leaders.
In a televised address, the Russian president also said that Ukraine never had a tradition of genuine statehood.
In another development President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed in principle to a summit to discuss the situation in Ukraine, the White House said Sunday, but only as long as Russia does not invade its neighbor.
The development, first announced in a statement by the French government after President Emmanuel Macron spoke to each leader separately, seemed to throw into question the timing of Russia’s widely expected invasion of Ukraine. / Argumentum.al