Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday and Ukraine urged its citizens to leave Russia after tensions escalated dramatically when Russia's leader got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with a raft of sanctions.
Hopes for a diplomatic way out of a new devastating war appeared all but sunk as the U.S. and key European allies accused Moscow on Tuesday of crossing a red line in rolling over Ukraine's border into separatist regions — with several calling it an invasion.
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Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday and Ukraine urged its citizens to leave Russia after tensions escalated dramatically when Russia's leader got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with a raft of sanctions.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday advised against travel to Russia and recommended anyone there leave immediately, saying Moscow's “aggression” could lead to a significant reduction in consular services.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Western leaders not to wait.
In Ukraine's east, where an eight-year conflict between Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed nearly 14,000 people, violence also spiked again. One Ukrainian soldier was killed and six more sustained injuries after shelling by the rebels, Ukrainian military said. Separatist officials reported several explosions on their territory overnight and three civilian deaths.
Finally, he asked for and was granted permission to use military force outside the country — effectively formalizing a Russian military deployment to the rebel regions.
The top U.S. diplomat canceled a meeting with his Russian counterpart; Kyiv recalled its ambassador and considered breaking all diplomatic ties with Moscow; dozens of nations further squeezed Russian oligarchs and banks out of international markets; Germany halted a lucrative pipeline deal; and the U.S. repositioned additional troops to NATO’s eastern flank bordering Russia.
FILE - A military truck drives down a street outside Donetsk, the territory controlled by pro-Russian militants, eastern Ukraine, late Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, after tensions over Ukraine escalated dramatically when Russian President Vladimir Putin got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions. (AP Photo, File)
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday advised against travel to Russia and recommended anyone there leave immediately, saying Moscow's “aggression” could lead to a significant reduction in consular services.
Already, the threat of war has shredded Ukraine's economy and raised the specter of massive casualties, energy shortages across Europe and global economic chaos.
Even as the conflict took a new, dangerous turn, leaders warned it could still get worse. Russian President Vladimir Putin has yet to unleash the force of the 150,000 troops massed on three sides of Ukraine, while U.S. President Joe Biden held back on even tougher sanctions that could cause economic turmoil for Russia but said they would go ahead if there is further aggression.
FILE - Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, looks at Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba as he speaks during a news conference at the State Department in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday, Feb.23, 2022, after tensions over Ukraine escalated dramatically when Russian President Vladimir Putin got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions. (AP PhotoCarolyn Kaster, Pool, File)
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Western leaders not to wait.
“We call on partners to impose more sanctions on Russia now," he wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. "Now the pressure needs to step up to stop Putin. Hit his economy and cronies. Hit more. Hit hard. Hit now.”
Responding defiantly to the steps already taken, Russian ambassador in the U.S. Anatoly Antonov retorted that “sanctions cannot solve a thing” in a statement on Facebook. “It is hard to imagine that there is a person in Washington who expects Russia to revise its foreign policy under a threat of restrictions.”
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison talks about the situation in Ukraine at a news conference in Sydney, Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022. Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday after tensions over Ukraine escalated dramatically when Russian President Vladimir Putin got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions. More than two dozen nations, from Europe to Japan to Australia, announced their own sets of sanctions against Russia. (AP PhotoRick Rycroft)
In Ukraine's east, where an eight-year conflict between Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed nearly 14,000 people, violence also spiked again. One Ukrainian soldier was killed and six more sustained injuries after shelling by the rebels, Ukrainian military said. Separatist officials reported several explosions on their territory overnight and three civilian deaths.
Since last Friday, when separatist leaders in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions announced mass evacuations into Russia, more than 96,000 residents of the separatist areas have crossed the Russian border.
After weeks of rising tensions, Putin took a series of steps this week that dramatically raised the stakes. First, he recognized the independence of those separatist regions. Then, he said that recognition extends even to the large parts of the territories now held by Ukrainian forces, including the major Azov Sea port of Mariupol.
FILE - Ukrainians hold up their country's flag, right, as they attend a patriotic action "Mariupol is Ukraine" in Mariupol, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, after tensions over Ukraine escalated dramatically when Russian President Vladimir Putin got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions. (AP PhotoSergei Grits, File)
Finally, he asked for and was granted permission to use military force outside the country — effectively formalizing a Russian military deployment to the rebel regions.
Still, Putin suggested there was a way out of the crisis, laying out three conditions: He called on Kyiv to recognize Russia’s sovereignty over Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014, to renounce its bid to join NATO and partially demilitarize.
But it was unclear if there was actually any room for diplomacy since the first two demands had been previously rejected by Ukraine and the West as non-starters.
FILE - Women show posters in support of the Ukraine as they attend a demonstration along the street near the Russian embassy to protest against the escalation of the tension between Russia and Ukraine in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Europe braced for further confrontation Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022 after tensions over Ukraine escalated dramatically when Russian President Vladimir Putin got the OK to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions. (AP PhotoMarkus Schreiber, File)
The Russian leader remained vague when asked whether he has sent any Russian troops into Ukraine and how far they could go. “I haven’t said that the troops will go there right now,” Putin responded, adding that “it’s impossible to forecast a specific pattern of action — it will depend on a concrete situation as it takes shape on the ground.”
Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine crisis at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine