President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address that he was announcing a «long overdue decision» to «immediately recognize» the independence of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR.
“I ask the Federal Assembly to support this decision, and then ratify the treaties of friendship and mutual assistance with both republics. These two documents will be prepared and signed in the very near future. And from those who seized and hold power in Kiev, we demand an immediate cessation of hostilities,” he said.
After that, the broadcast of «Russia 24» showed footage of the president signing decrees on independence. After that, Putin, together with the heads of the self-proclaimed republics Pushilin and Pasechnik, signs a decree on cooperation between them and Russia.
Putin with Pushilin and Pasechnik in the Kremlin. Screenshot of the broadcast of «Russia 24»
Before making a decision, Putin held a meeting of the Security Council. He invited its participants to express their opinion on the recognition of the independence of the DPR and LPR.
Putin emphasized that he had not discussed this issue with any of the participants in the meeting in advance: “Each of you knows that I have not discussed anything with anyone in advance discussed, did not ask your opinion in advance, and what is happening now is happening from scratch, because I wanted to know your opinion without any preliminary preparation.
As a result, the need to recognize the independence of the self-proclaimed republics was made, in particular, by Deputy Head of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko, Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev and Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service Sergei Naryshkin.
For more details on how the meeting went, go online at Mediazones.