Preparing for the possibility of a large-scale Russian invasion, the Ukrainian government has moved to declare a 30-day state of emergency, grant citizens the right to bear arms, and conscript military reservists between the ages of 18 and 60, adding nearly 200,000 troops to the country’s defense as Russian troops continue to enter the Donbas region.
Zelensky said in a televised speech that there was no need for a “general mobilization” of civilians, however “we need to promptly replenish the Ukrainian army and other military formations.”
“As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, I issued a decree on the conscription of reservists during a special period,” Zelensky said. “We must increase the readiness of the Ukrainian army for all possible changes in the operational situation.”
“We are certain of ourselves, we are certain in our country, we are certain in our victory,” he added.
Zelensky’s government is also planning to institute a 30-day state of emergency, pending parliamentary approval. The state of emergency will allow the government to implement additional security measures.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian parliament on Wednesday took steps toward giving civilians the right to bear arms, though the final vote has not yet been conducted.
The Ukrainian government has also urged all of its citizens who remain in Russia to flee the country.
Russia has deployed up to 190,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders, including in neighboring Belarus. Russian president Vladimir Putin on Monday recognized the independence of two separatist enclaves in the Donbass region, where Russian-backed separatists have fought with the Ukrainian army since 2014. Putin has authorized the entry of Russian troops into the Donbass.
President Biden yesterday announced a “first tranche” of economic sanctions against Russia, including sanctions on Russian sovereign debt, two Russian banks, and other sanctions to be detailed on Wednesday against the country’s elite class. While Biden promised additional sanctions should Russia continue to invade Ukraine, Senator Ben Sasse (R., Neb.) criticized those sanctions as “too little, too late.”
“These sanctions should have happened before Putin further invaded Ukraine — not after,” Sasse said in a statement, adding that “we shouldn’t fool ourselves into thinking that today’s incremental sanctions will deter Putin from trying to install a puppet government in Kyiv.”