Ukraine accelerates defense preparations against a possible Russian offensive

Ukraine declared a state of emergency on Wednesday and mobilized reservists at the risk that Russian President Vladimir Putin, who defies Western sanctions, orders an invasion of the country.

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In this context of tension, the Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mykailo Fyodorov reported that the country was suffering a new massive cyberattack against its official websites.

A large-scale cyberattack against Ukraine’s strategic infrastructure is one of the scenarios mentioned as heralding a military offensive.

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Hours earlier, the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelensky, stated that “the future of European security” would be decided in Ukraineat a time when 150,000 Russian soldiers are deployed on its borders, according to US reports.

Putin insisted, in a speech on the occasion of Defenders of the Fatherland Day, that Russian interests “are not negotiable”, although he mentioned the possibility of a “direct and honest dialogue with the West”.

On Tuesday, Putin obtained parliamentary authorization to deploy troops in Ukraine if necessary and again demanded that the Ukrainian government renounce joining NATO and that the former Soviet republic, with 14 million inhabitants, become a “demilitarized” country.

The Russian president also recognized the sovereignty of pro-Russian separatists over a much larger territory than they currently control, raising fears of an incursion into areas now controlled by Ukrainian forces.

Ukraine responded on Wednesday by ordering the mobilization of reservists aged 18 to 60 and called on Ukrainian citizens in Russia –some three million people, according to some estimates– to leave that country “immediately.”

The Security Council of Ukraine asked the Parliament to declare a state of emergency “within 48 hours”, to “strengthen the protection” of public order and strategic infrastructures.

– No movement on the ground –

Putin maintains suspense about his military intentions.

After recognizing the independence of the breakaway “republics” of Donetsk and Lugansk on Monday, the Russian upper house gave the green light for the deployment of Russian forces in Ukraine.

These decisions lay the groundwork for a large-scale intervention, but so far there is no information on significant troop movements.

In Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, the inhabitants have not abandoned their routine.

But since Tuesday, every hour on the hour, loudspeakers play the Ukrainian national anthem in the huge Maidan square.

The population continues to speculate on possible scenarios, from a new status quo in the separatist territories to an all-out war between the Russians and the Ukrainians.

Many fear that the crisis could lead to the worst conflict in Europe since 1945, when World War II ended.

A Russian offensive could spark a “new refugee crisis” with up to 5 million people displaced, the US ambassador to the UN in New York warned on Wednesday.

Russia it has begun to evacuate its diplomatic staff from Ukraine and the Russian flag no longer flies over its embassy in Kiev. The United States had already closed theirs.

– First penalties –

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres stated that the world is facing “a moment of danger” and denounced the “violations of the territorial integrity and sovereignty” of Ukraine.

The European Union called a summit for Thursday, denouncing the “aggressive actions” of Russia.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss considered an invasion of Ukraine “highly likely”.

And Pope Francis lamented the “increasingly alarming scenarios” regarding that conflict.

US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that the latest Russian decisions amount to the “beginning of an invasion”, but added that “there is still time to avoid the worst”.

Washington and its Western allies have imposed sanctions in response to the recognition of the separatists against whom Kiev has been fighting for eight years, a conflict that has left more than 14,000 dead.

Germany froze the giant Nord Stream II gas pipeline project, which is supposed to bring more Russian gas to the country, and Biden announced a “first tranche” of sanctions to prevent Moscow from getting Western funds to pay its debt.

Russia promised a “strong” and “painful” response to US sanctions.

The measures remain modest compared to those announced in the event of an invasion, and Moscow has nearly $640 billion in foreign exchange reserves and $183 billion in a sovereign wealth fund to deal with them.

– “A bit of fear” –

On the eastern front, renewed fighting between the army and separatists in recent days continued on Wednesday.

One Ukrainian soldier was killed in a shelling and another was wounded, the army said.

“They started shooting harder,” said Dmitri Maksimenko, a miner from Krasnogorivka, a town near the Ukrainian front line.

The Lugansk separatists announced the death of a fighter and a civilian overnight.

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Source: Elcomercio

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