Ukraine war: Putin announces partial military mobilisation in Russia
Moscow (Russia), September 21: President Vladimir Putin announced on Wednesday that he has signed a decree on partial mobilisation in Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, asserting that the West's aim is to weaken, divide, and ultimately destroy Russia.
"In order to protect our homeland, its sovereignty and territorial integrity, to ensure the security of our people and people in the liberated territories, I consider it necessary to support the proposal of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff to conduct partial mobilization in the Russian Federation," Putin said.
He also stated that efforts to begin partial mobilisation would begin today.
"I repeat, we are talking only about partial mobilization. That is, only those citizens who are in the reserve and, above all, those who served in the armed forces, have certain military specialities and relevant experience, will be subject to conscription," Putin added.
"After the Kyiv regime actually publicly refused a peaceful solution to the Donbas problem today and, moreover, announced its claim to nuclear weapons, it became absolutely clear that a new next large-scale offensive in the Donbas, as it had already happened twice before, was inevitable," he continued.
The Russian President stated at the start of his speech to the country that Western countries are trying to destroy Russia.
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"The purpose of this West is to weaken, divide and ultimately destroy our country. They are already directly saying that in 1991 they were able to split the Soviet Union, and now the time has come for Russia to break up into a multitude of regions and areas which are fatally hostile to each other," the Russian president was quoted as saying by CNN.
On September 23-27, referendums on joining Russia will be held in the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions of eastern Ukraine.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Russian plans to hold referendums in occupied eastern and southern Ukraine "noise," and thanked Ukraine's allies for condemning the votes, which are set to begin on Friday.
During a meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Tuesday, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield criticised the expected referendums and reiterated that the US will not recognise any attempt by Russia to "claim annexation of Ukraine's sovereign territory."
The United States, along with the G7 nations and the European Union (EU), has placed severe and immediate economic sanctions on Russia in response to their "atrocities in Ukraine, including in Bucha."
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-PTC News
