Russia yesterday test-fired its latest hypersonic, cruise and nuclear-capable ballistic missiles at what it said were “planned exercises,” one day after US President Joe Biden said he is now “convinced” that Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to invade Ukraine and assault its capital.
The statement came after weeks of saying that the US was not sure whether Putin had made the final decision, with Biden citing intelligence as the reason for the change in assessment.
“As of this moment, I’m convinced he’s made the decision,” Biden said. “We have reason to believe that.”
Photo: AP
He reiterated that the assault could occur in the “coming days.”
Biden’s comments followed a day of rising violence that included a humanitarian convoy hit by shelling and a vehicle bombing in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
Pro-Russian rebels began evacuating civilians from the conflict zone with an announcement that appeared to be part of Moscow’s efforts to paint Ukraine as the aggressor.
The leaders of Ukraine’s two breakaway regions yesterday announced a general mobilization, spurring fears of a further escalation.
“I urge my fellow citizens who are in the reserves to come to military conscription offices. Today I signed a decree on general mobilization,” Denis Pushilin, the pro-Moscow leader of the so-called “Donetsk People’s Republic,” said in a video statement.
The leader of the Lugansk separatist region, Leonid Pasechnik, published a decree saying that the measure in his region was signed to prepare for “repelling aggression.”
“Together, we will achieve for all of us the victory we desire and need. We will protect Donbas and all Russian people,” Pushilin added, using the term for eastern Ukraine.
In Moscow, leaders hailed the test-firing.
“All the missiles hit their targets, confirming their performance objectives,” the Kremlin said in a statement, adding that the drills included Tu-95 bombers and submarines.
“The main objective of these exercises is to perfect the performance of our strategic offensive forces, with the aim of delivering a guaranteed strike against the enemy,” Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov told Putin in televised comments.
The Russian leader watched the drills from the Kremlin’s situation room with visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
The Ukrainian government has repeatedly denied plans to regain control of separatist-held areas by force or of the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014.
More than 14,000 people have been killed in fighting between the Ukrainian military and separatists since fighting broke out in 2014.
Additional reporting by AFP
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