Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday urged Kyiv to stop all military action in Ukraine at a grand Kremlin ceremony to formally annex, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Lugansk, regions which his forces mostly controlled. Putin signed the accord to annex the four regions after holding what Russian authorities called referendums in the occupied areas of Ukraine that were condemned by Kyiv and governments worldwide.
“We call on the Kyiv regime to immediately stop fighting and stop all hostilities… and return to the negotiating table,” Putin said during a televised speech at the Kremlin.
In his speech, he said the West wants to make Russia a “colony,” “rob” it, and turn its people into a “crowd of voiceless slaves.”
“They don’t need Russia, but we do,” he was quoted as saying. “Russia will always be Russia. We will always defend ourselves and our motherland,” he added.
Putin slammed the “rules-based order” in the West and “Has anyone seen these rules? Who agreed to them?” He said the western elite is “colonial” and “racist” because they are “spreading Russophobia all over the world.”
EU leaders vowed they would “never recognise” Russia’s “illegal” annexation of four more regions in Ukraine and accused the Kremlin of putting global security at risk. “We firmly reject and unequivocally condemn the illegal annexation by Russia of Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions,” the 27 leaders said in a statement.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv is requesting fast-track NATO membership after Russia formally annexed four Moscow-held regions of Ukraine. “We have already proven our compatibility with Alliance standards… We are taking a decisive step by signing Ukraine’s application for accelerated accession to NATO,” Zelensky said in a video posted by the Ukrainian presidency on social media.
He also said that he would not negotiate with Russia as long as President Vladimir Putin is in power. “Ukraine will not hold any negotiations with Russia as long as Putin is the president of the Russian Federation. We will negotiate with the new president,” Zelensky said.
Putin has warned he could use nuclear weapons to retain control of the territory as the United States leads Western allies in vowing “never” to recognise the regions as anything other than part of Ukraine.
Putin’s address came hours after an attack on a frontline civilian convoy killed at least 25 people in southern Ukraine. Ukrainian officials said the civilians were preparing to leave to pick up relatives. “Twenty-five killed and about 50 wounded in an attack by the Russian military on a humanitarian convoy in Zaporizhzhia. Investigation launched,” said the prosecutor general’s office on Telegram.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said “Only complete terrorists could do this,” adding “Bloodthirsty scum! You will definitely answer.”
(With inputs from AFP)
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