On the night of February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a war against Ukraine, calling it a “special military operation in the Donbass” in order to protect people who “are being subjected to genocide.” Putin’s genocide claims have previously been refuted by the EU and the UN. The West accused him of lying. Ukraine severed diplomatic relations with Russia. The Council of Europe suspended Russia’s membership in the organization. Putin and Lavrov are included in the sanctions lists of the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom. DW is following developments on Sunday, February 27th (Moscow time).
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As a response to Russian aggression against Ukraine, Finland is preparing for airspace closure for Russian aircraft. This was announced by the Minister of Transport and Communications of the country Timo Harakka. It is not yet known when the ban will take effect. Russian aircraft have already been banned from entering the airspace of Bulgaria, Great Britain, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Estonia.
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President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky announced the formation of a new division – International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine. It will include foreign citizens who wish to take part in repelling Russia’s aggression. “All foreigners who want to join the resistance to the Russian occupiers and the protection of world security are invited by the leadership of Ukraine to come to our state and join the ranks of the Territorial Defense Forces. A separate unit is being formed from foreigners – the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine,” the appeal published on the website says. heads of state on Sunday, February 27.
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More than 63 thousand people have already signed a petition posted on the Change.org website calling on deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation to initiate impeachment of Russian President Vladimir Putin “as guilty of treason and war crimes.” The author of the appeal accuses Putin of unmotivated aggression against Ukraine, as well as a deliberate attempt to harm the people of Russia. The president’s decision, the statement emphasizes, “makes Russia a rogue state.” The country may be forever cut off from the world economy, and its multi-million population is doomed to poverty and technological degradation, the appeal states.
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Website of the Russian state corporation for space activities “Roskosmos” subjected to a massive DDoS attack. The main page of the portal does not load, the links do not work.
Russian troops broke into the center of Kharkov
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Russian equipment broke into the central part of Kharkov. This was announced in the Telegram channel by the head of the city administration Oleg Sinegubov. “The Armed Forces of Ukraine are liquidating the enemy,” he said, urging the population not to leave their shelters and not to take to the streets of the city.
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Fund of the first President of the USSR, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Mikhail Gorbachev called for an early cessation of hostilities in Ukraine and the immediate start of peace talks. “There is and cannot be anything more valuable in the world than human lives,” the Gorbachev Foundation said in a statement. The Fund is ready to support any efforts aimed at resuming the negotiation process. “Only negotiations and dialogue based on mutual respect and consideration of interests are the only possible way to resolve the most acute contradictions and problems,” the document states.