On Wednesday morning, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "partial mobilization" of Russia's armed forces, signing an order that will deploy Russians who have completed military training to Ukraine, stopping short of a full-scale draft.
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| Vladimir Putin, President of Russia |
In a televised speech to the country, Putin stated that only individuals who are presently enrolled in the reserve, as well as those who have previously served in the army, as well as those with certain occupations and the required experience, will be called up for military duty.
The declaration came the day after certain regions of Ukraine under Russian influence revealed plans for referendums on joining Russia. The planned sequence of events brought to mind Vladimir Putin's declaration in February that tens of thousands of troops would be sent into Ukraine.
Putin's declaration on Wednesday also came at a time when his nation was having trouble restocking its combat force in Ukraine and was experiencing defeats on the battlefield as the Ukrainian counteroffensive was gaining momentum.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stated during a separate television interview that Russia will promptly call up 300,000 reservists to "hold the line at the front" in Ukraine.
President Biden told global leaders Wednesday morning at the U.N. General Assembly that by invading Ukraine, "Russia has blatantly violated the key foundations of the United Nations charter."
The president stated that "Putin believes he had to act because Russia was endangered." "Nobody put Russia in danger. And nobody—aside from Russia—wanted a war."
The United States will never acknowledge Russia's claim to allegedly acquired Ukrainian land, and we will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes, declared U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink in a tweet criticizing Russia for intensifying the conflict with Ukraine.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, demanded sanctions on Russia in his late-afternoon video address to the General Assembly "We can restore the Ukrainian flag to every square inch of our country. We can use our weapons to do it. But we need more time."
Putin claimed in his speech that the bigger force was required because Ukraine continued to get powerful weapons from a "collective West" whose goal it was to "weaken, isolate, and destroy Russia."
In addition, the Russian leader claimed that Russia had a moral duty to defend citizens in parts of Ukraine that were partially under its control when this week's "referendums" on joining the Russian Federation were being held.
Putin once more accused Ukraine and its supporters of posing a nuclear danger to Russia by supplying Ukraine with long-range weaponry capable of striking deep within Russian territory. Putin emphasized that Russia has a strong nuclear weapons and that it would use "all possible methods" to defend itself and its citizens. This is not a bluff, stated Putin.
"Those who are using nuclear weapons to threaten us should be aware that the rose-colored breezes might shift and blow in their favor."
The military minister also released updated data on Russian deaths, noting that 5,937 Russian servicemen had lost their lives in the conflict in Ukraine. Estimates from the West are significantly higher.