Putin declares “state of war” in Ukraine’s occupied regions

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday declared a “state of war” in the annexed Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions. The decree issued by Putin has been sent to the Council of the Russian Federation for approval.

The President of Russia announced the decision early on Wednesday, at the meeting of the Security Council, which was held in the format of a video conference.

According to Putin’s decree, the “use of armed force against the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation” is named as the basis for declaring “state of war”.

Per the decree, the Russian government is obliged to submit its own proposals on acceptable measures within three days in accordance with the proposals of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Federal Security Service, the Russian Guard and the Main Division of Special Programs of the President.