MOSCOW, February 14. /TASS/. The State Duma on Tuesday will consider two competing appeals to Russian President Vladimir Putin to recognize two self-proclaimed republics in Ukraine, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the parliament’s the lower house, said on Telegram.
"The issue of the appeal to the president about the need to recognize the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics will be considered tomorrow in preferential voting," he said. "The version that will collect more votes in the preferential voting will be adopted."
The first version, the speaker said, stipulates that the appeal be sent to the president immediately after it passes. The other version would first be sent for review to the Foreign Ministry and other government agencies, and lawmakers will later come back to its consideration.
"This is an extremely important and high-stakes issue," Volodin said. "Washington is inflaming tensions and supplying weapons to Ukraine together with European countries, while Kiev continues to disregard the Minsk accords."
"All that carries threats and risks for the lives of our citizens and fellow Russians that live in the DPR and LPR," he went on to say.
The State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots on Monday supported both versions of the appeal. One of them has been put forth by the Communist Party faction, and the other was submitted by United Russia.
The Communist fraction in the State Duma and its leader Gennady Zyuganov on January 19 submitted to the State Duma an appeal from the lower house to Putin for the recognition of the Donetsk and Lugansk republics. As follows from the draft, the State Duma would ask the head of state to recognize the republics as "independent and sovereign states." The draft of the appeal says the move would be "morally justified.".
SweatyRussian on February 14th, 2022 at 20:31 UTC »
This is the plan, simplified: 1. Regions in Ukraine have a "vote" to declare independence from Ukraine. Russia recognizes the declared independence of those regions. 2. Ukraine refuses to recognize the declared independent regions, citing that the election results are not to be trusted, it is a Russian plot. 3. The newly declared regions in Ukraine ask Russia for protection from the already present Ukrainian military forces. 4. Russia says that they will peacefully establish troops in those regions to ensure the peace, this is not an "invasion". 5. Ukraine must decide how to respond, by allowing Russian peace keepers or by refusing to allow them into Ukraine, which will require military force, thus starting the war.
As you see in this scenario, Russia is trying to protect the people from unqualified Ukrainian aggression, and if it is attacked, it will respond in kind. It is not an invasion in this scenario, it is a peace keeping mission.
Typing all this makes me sweaty
Glyphmeister on February 14th, 2022 at 17:20 UTC »
This article was published simultaneously by Russian state media: https://tass.com/world/1403151
“According to our sources, there are many hundreds of professional saboteurs and professional instructors who, according to Ukraine’s estimates have already trained more than 20,000 men for committing acts of sabotage”
It’s like they aren’t even trying to fabricate a mildly convincing false flag.
etrask on February 14th, 2022 at 17:11 UTC »
Neat. Can we declare Crimea independent? Since we’re declaring things on behalf of sovereign people and all.