The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has intensified with President Wladimir Putin officially recognising two separatist regions in the East of Ukraine as independent territories.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has come forward to say that if Russia “sets one foot into Ukraine”, Moscow can expect a huge package of sanctions, reports NU.nl.
In a Tweet, Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Wopke Hoekstra has stated that this act by Russia is considered a “blatant violation of international law” and a breach of Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
The Netherlands, according to Hoekstra, “strongly condemns” Russia’s actions, and will respond firmly in line with the EU and NATO. 👇🏻
What happened yesterday?
Events started to take a turn yesterday when the leaders of the pro-Russian separatist movements in the two regions Donetsk and Luhansk in the East of Ukraine published a video asking Russia to recognise their independence and send military support.
In the evening, Putin proceeded to follow their request in a highly staged press conference on Russian national television.
Not much later, Putin sent military troops as part of a “peace mission” to Donetsk and Luhansk, reports NU.nl. Wouldn’t that count as “setting a foot” into Ukraine, Rutte?
In doing this, Putin committed a serious breach of international law. He officially declared the Minsk agreements to have failed — which had bound both Russia and the separatist Ukrainian territories to the promise of a ceasefire and steps towards peacebuilding.
The Ukraine-Russia conflict
The Russia and Ukraine conflict first flared up again in January 2021, when Putin stationed almost 2/3 of his military troops on Ukraine’s border. Officially, Moscow claimed that Russia was performing a ‘military exercise’.
Parallel to this display of military power, Putin warned NATO — a western military alliance between the United States and many EU countries — to stop expanding eastwards and particularly to stay clear of Ukraine.
Western observers and political leaders, including the Netherlands, have reacted strongly to Russia’s military build-up at Ukraine’s border. Despite Putin’s claims, there are fears that Russia plans to invade Ukraine, which would practically start a war in the very centre of Europe.
The Dutch response
In January of this year, the Dutch government pledged support for Ukraine by providing weapons, fighter jets and logistic support to strengthen the Ukrainian defence.
On top of that, the Dutch Royal airline KLM has stopped all flights to Ukraine for an indefinite period. Official calls from the government have asked Dutch citizens to leave the country as soon as possible.
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Could you provide a link to this video or another source you are referring to?
“ Events started to take a turn yesterday when the leaders of the pro-Russian separatist movements in the two regions Donetsk and Luhansk in the East of Ukraine published a video asking Russia to recognise their independence and send military support.”
Hi Maryna, thanks for your question. The BBC covered this in an article written late last night which you can find here: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-60470900. Hope that clarifies everything!
We, Russian people don’t want a war because of the madness of Russian autocrat🤬😡🤯😭…that’s just insane and terrifying