Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an agreement on the annexation of four occupied territories in Ukraine: Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), Zaporiza Oblast and Kherson Oblast on the 30th (local time) We will defend it with force and means ,” he said.
Putin made this comment at the signing ceremony of the annexation agreement at the Kremlin in Moscow on the same day. He said the annexation was based on the right to self-determination enshrined in the UN Charter, adding that “inhabitants of the free territories will now become Russian citizens forever.” He urged Ukraine to return to the negotiating table, but said the options of the newly annexed locals were not up for discussion.
Putin also issued lengthy accusations against the West, including the United States. He argued that the West was responsible for the damage to the Nordstream, a natural gas pipeline from Russia to Europe, and that the United States had begun to destroy Europe’s energy industry.
He also emphasized the importance of the war in Ukraine, saying, “The battlefield to which fate and history have called us is a battlefield for our people, a battlefield for the great historical Russia.”
