Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, formally annexed four areas of Ukraine on Wednesday despite significant battlefield shifts in recent days that reduced the amount of seized land Moscow now controls.
With its annexation campaign, military mobilisation, and threats to use nuclear weapons to defend all of its territories, Russia has intensified its seven-month conflict.
According to the state-run TASS news agency, Putin has now approved a measure officially merging the four areas, which make up around 18% of Ukraine’s land, into Russia.
The plan has already been approved by the two chambers of the Russian parliament; the Russian president’s signature was the last step in the legislative procedure.According to Kiev and its Western allies, Russia’s attempt at annexation is unlawful and will never be recognised. Ukraine also asserts that its army will retake any territory that Russian soldiers have captured.
In the past week, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, his military has made significant, quick successes over Russian forces, reclaiming dozens of towns in the south and east that Russia has annexed.Russian forces in the Donetsk and Kherson districts have dug in at new positions where they aim to prevent the Ukrainian advance after being forced to retreat recently.
After holding what it called referendums over the course of several days starting on September 23, which Kyiv and Western countries condemned as unlawful and coercive, Moscow moved to annexe those territories.
The Ukrainian flag seemed to be raised above one of the settlements, Davydiv Brid, in Kherson, according to a video published by the Ukrainian defence ministry on Tuesday.
