IPA Newspack
  • Home
  • now
  • politics
  • business
  • markets

IPA /

Happening Now

Happening Now

Russia expands military drills near Ukraine

Russia and Belarus are extending military drills that were due to end on Sunday, the Belarus defence minister said, in a step that further intensifies pressure on Ukraine as Western leaders warn of an imminent Russian invasion.

The decision to extend the drills was taken because of military activity near the borders of Russia and Belarus and an escalation of the situation in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, the Belarusian defence ministry said in a statement.

NATO says Russia has up to 30,000 troops in Belarus and could use them as part of an invasion force to attack Ukraine, which lies to the south of Belarus. Moscow denies any such intention.

The Kremlin did not comment on the Belarus drills.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the repeated warnings by the West that Russia was about to invade Ukraine were provocative and could have adverse consequences, without giving details.

Russia and its allies say Ukraine and the West are whipping up tensions by sending NATO reinforcements to eastern Europe.

Belarus Defence Minister Viktor Khrenin said the focus of the extended exercises was “to ensure an adequate response and de-escalation of military preparations of ill-wishers near our common borders.”

Western countries are preparing sanctions they say would be wide-reaching against Russian companies and individuals in case of an invasion.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a BBC interview broadcast on Sunday that such sanctions would “hit very very hard,” and could include restrictions on Russian businesses’ access to the dollar and the pound.

However, he acknowledged such threats may not deter Moscow.

“We have to accept at the moment that (Russian President) Vladimir Putin is possibly thinking illogically about this and doesn’t see the disaster ahead,” Johnson said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the West should impose some of the sanctions now, rather than waiting for an invasion.

“Russia has to be stopped right now. We see how events are unfolding,” Kuleba said.

The focus of tensions in recent days has been on the swathe of eastern Ukraine that Russian-backed rebels seized in 2014, the same year Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine. More than 14,000 people have been killed in the conflict in the east.

Incidents of shelling across the line dividing government forces and separatists – which were sporadic in the past – increased sharply last week.

On Sunday, a Reuters reporter heard explosions in the centre of Donetsk city in the eastern Donbass region controlled by separatists. Heavy shelling was heard elsewhere in the region.

SMS messages sent to residents of Donetsk urged men to report for military duty.

More than 30,000 people from Donetsk and nearby Luhansk have crossed the Russian border in the past 24 hours, TASS news agency said, quoting authorities in Russia’s Rostov region. The separatists began evacuating residents on Friday saying that Ukraine was planning to attack – which Kyiv denied.

Kyiv’s Western allies are concerned Russia might use the escalation as a pretext for wider conflict.

TROOP BUILD-UP

The renewed fighting in eastern Ukraine follows a build-up over several weeks of Russia troops to the north, east and south of the country. The West estimates 150,000 or more Russian troops are currently near Ukraine’s borders.

“The plan that we are seeing is for something that could be really the biggest war in Europe since 1945 just in terms of sheer scale,” Johnson said.

With Western fears of war rising, U.S. President Joe Biden was due to convene his top advisers later in the day to discuss the crisis. Biden said on Saturday he believed Russia could launch an attack “at any time,” despite assurances from the Kremlin that some troops were returning to their permanent bases after military exercises.

A Russian diplomat at the U.N. said no-one should tell Russia where or when to conduct military exercises, adding that U.S. and British intelligence assessments could not be trusted, citing mistakes made prior to the war in Iraq.

Foreign ministers from the G7 group of rich nations said on Saturday they had seen no evidence Russia is reducing military activity in the area.

Russia ordered the military build-up several months ago while demanding NATO prevent Ukraine from ever joining the alliance. It says Western warnings that it is planning to invade Ukraine are hysterical and dangerous.

However, it has warned of unspecified “military-technical” measures if demands including a NATO pullback from Eastern Europe are not met.

 

With inputs from NDTV

IPA Special

BJP Juggernaut Is On The Roll; Where Is The Congress?

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

In Maharashtra, Fadnavis Is The Main Driver Of The New Ruling Combination

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Zero Hunger By 2030 Not Possible On Business-As-Usual Path

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Corporate Media In India Not Taking Strong Position Against Attacks On Human Rights

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Dharmendra Pradhan Seeks CM Nitish Kumar’s Nod On Murmu

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Trinamool Congress MLA Comparing Mamata With Sarada Devi Creates Furore

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Supreme Court Has Failed To Secure Justice For Gujarat Riot Victims

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Agnipath Scheme Challenges All Traditions Of Indian Military Service

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Public Sector General Insurance Unions Reject Wage Revision Offer

July 1, 2022
Happening Now

Supreme Court holds Nupur responsible for igniting tension

July 1, 2022
Happening Now

Eknath Shinde projects himself as Bal Thackeray’s real heir

July 1, 2022
Politics

CM Shinde says Fadnavis has a ‘big heart’

July 1, 2022
Happening Now

Pawar says Fadnavis cannot but be unhappy being No.2

July 1, 2022
Politics

Governor asks Mamata to withdraw ‘Jihad against BJP’ call

July 1, 2022
Politics

Hoardings highlight TRS-BJP war ahead of Modi Hyderabad visit

July 1, 2022
IPA Special

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren Is Under Siege By BJP Leadership

June 30, 2022
IPA Special

Testing Time For Uddhav Thackeray As The Battle For Shiv Sena Control Begins

June 30, 2022
IPA Special

Pakistan Struggling Hard To Secure Emergency Financial Aid From IMF

June 30, 2022
IPA Special

Punish Culprits For Gruesome Killing Of Tailor In Udaipur

June 30, 2022
IPA Special

Samajwadi Party Takes Lessons From Defeat In Bypolls In Uttar Pradesh

June 30, 2022

An appeal

The legacy of IPA, founded by Nikhil Chakravartty, the doyen of journalism in India, to keep the flag of independent media flying high, is facing the threat of extinction due to the effect of the Covid pandemic. Only an emergency funding can avert such an eventuality. We appeal to all those who believe in the freedom of expression to contribute to this noble cause.
Click here to learn more

Share

Reply

  • 0
More on IPA

Supreme Court holds Nupur responsible for igniting tension

July 1, 2022 12:46 pm | IPA Webdesk

The Supreme Court today blamed suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma for igniting tension with her comments on Prophet Muhammad and said she should “apologise to...

Happening Now

Eknath Shinde projects himself as Bal Thackeray’s real heir

July 1, 2022 9:30 am | IPA Webdesk

Eknath Shinde, who took oath as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra after nine days of rebellion against Shiv Sena’s Uddhav Thackeray leadership, has sent out...

Happening Now

Pawar says Fadnavis cannot but be unhappy being No.2

July 1, 2022 9:14 am | IPA Webdesk

The BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, who took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra after a party command today, could not have done so “happily”,...

Happening Now

Uddhav Thackeray, sons visit temple after resignation

June 30, 2022 8:40 am | IPA Webdesk

Uddhav Thackeray, out of power in Maharashtra and marginalised in the party founded by his father, rounded up the day with a visit to a...

Happening Now

Supreme Court holds Nupur responsible for igniting tension

in Happening Now
Jul 1, 2022   ·  

Eknath Shinde projects himself as Bal Thackeray’s real heir

in Happening Now
Jul 1, 2022   ·  

Pawar says Fadnavis cannot but be unhappy being No.2

in Happening Now
Jul 1, 2022   ·  

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Follow us on
Up Next: Akhilesh slams PM’s bomb dig
©2020 -2021 India Press Agency, All Rights Reserved
Newspack by India Press Agency
Posting....
logo
  • Home
  • now
  • politics
  • business
  • markets