MOSCOW, Feb 24The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said, commenting on the threat of new sanctions against Russia, that preparations for this had been going on all these years. «If someone believed that these sanctions, which were imposed on our country during the Ukrainian events, and before Ukrainian events, and I remind you that the cancellation of Russian-American meetings happened even before 2014, at the level of summits, it was the decision of (ex-US President Barack — ed.) Obama, and restrictive lists were introduced up to Ukraine, the «Magnitsky list» and much other,” Zakharova said on the air of the Russia 24 TV channel.Yesterday, 17:19 The Permanent Representative to the EU said that the new EU sanctions will meet Moscow's retaliatory steps «These restrictions all already existed, and even more were being prepared and reasons were needed. So, if someone thinks that this never happened and this is starting only today or it was five or seven years ago, they are mistaken, massive preparations were underway…,” Zakharova added. Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier announced that he had decided on a special Russian operation to demilitarize Ukraine. In a televised address to the Russians, he said that the circumstances «require decisive and immediate action from us, the people's republics of Donbass turned to Russia with a request for help.» He added that «in this regard, in accordance with Article 51, part 7 of the UN Charter, with the sanction of the Federation Council and in pursuance of the treaties of friendship and mutual assistance with the DPR and LPR ratified by the Federal Assembly, I have decided to conduct a special military operation» . The President of the Russian Federation said that all responsibility for the bloodshed would be on the conscience of the ruling regime in Ukraine. Putin urged the Ukrainian military not to follow the criminal orders of the Ukrainian authorities, to lay down their arms and go home. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian armed forces did not launch any missile, air or artillery strikes on the cities of Ukraine. According to the agency, military infrastructure, air defense facilities, military airfields, aviation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are disabled by high-precision weapons. At the same time, the ministry clarified that nothing threatens the civilian population.The development of the situation in Donbass is in the online report >>
