- Title: TIMELINE: Putin's key remarks since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine
- Date: 5th May 2022
- Summary: Russian President Vladimir Putin authorised a special military operation in Ukraine's Donbas region in the early hours of Thursday morning (February 24) and told the Ukrainian military to lay down their weapons and go home. In a special televised address on Russian state TV, Putin said Russia has been left with no choice but to defend itself against what he said were threats emanating from modern Ukraine. The scope of the Russian military operation was not immediately clear. A Reuters reporter in Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, heard explosions which sounded like artillery shelling in the distance. Putin said Russia would respond instantly if any external force tried to interfere with its actions and that Moscow would try to de-militarise and 'de-Nazify' Ukraine. MOSCOW, RUSSIA (FILE - FEBRUARY 24, 2022) (RUSSIAN POOL) (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN PRESIDENT, VLADIMIR PUTIN, SAYING: "The people's republic of Donbas asked Russia for help. In this regard, under Article 51, Part 7th of the Charter of the United Nations, with the approval of the Russian State Federal Council, and in accordance with the friendship and mutual assistance treaties with the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic, ratified by the Russian parliament on February 22, I decided to conduct a special military operation. It aims to protect people who have been bullied and subjected to genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years. For that, we will strive to de-militarise and de-Nazify Ukraine and will bring to justice those who committed multiple bloody crimes against civilians, including Russian citizens."
- Embargoed: 19th May 2022 16:05
- Keywords: Bucha Easter Kyiv Putin Russia Ukraine conflict invasion war
- Location: VARIOUS, RUSSIA; VARIOUS, UKRAINE
- City: VARIOUS, RUSSIA; VARIOUS, UKRAINE
- Country: Russia
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Europe,Military Conflicts,Editors' Choice
- Reuters ID: LVA001430627042022RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THERE IS GRAPHIC CONTENT IN SHOTS 31, 32; THIS EDIT IS A TIMELINE OF PREVIOUS EVENTS AND CONTAINS NO NEW FOOTAGE.
Russian President Vladimir Putin authorised a military operation in Ukraine's Donbas region in the early hours of February 24, 2022, and told the Ukrainian military to lay down their weapons and go home.
Western countries have since imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia's corporate and financial system, sparking a fight between Russia and several European countries it supplies with natural gas.
Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special operation" to disarm its neighbour and protect its Russian-speaking population from "fascists". Kyiv and the West say the fascist allegation is a baseless pretext for an unprovoked act of aggression.
Thousands of military personnel on both sides have been reported killed since the fighting began - although exact figures are unknown.
It has also been reported that over 3,000 civilians have lost their lives in Ukraine.
According to the UN, more than 12 million people are thought to have been forced from their homes: 6.5 million have been displaced within Ukraine and a further 5.6 million people have fled to neighbouring countries - with Poland taking the vast majority. - Copyright Holder: POOL (CAN SELL)
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