U.S. flag on the embassy on Novinsky Boulevard in MoscowWASHINGTON, Feb 27The US Embassy in Russia has advised fellow citizens to consider leaving immediately while commercial flights are still available. A warning posted on the US Embassy website says more airlines are canceling flights to and from Russia, and many countries have closed airspace to Russian carriers.< embassy .Transport restrictions are imposed by Western countries in response to the events in Ukraine and receive a symmetrical response from the Russian side.The Swedish Foreign Ministry recommended that its citizens refrain from traveling to RussiaRussia launched a military operation to demilitarize Ukraine early on Thursday morning, February 24. In a televised address to the Russians, President Vladimir Putin said that circumstances "require decisive and immediate action from us, the people's republics of Donbass have asked for help." According to the Russian leader, all responsibility for the bloodshed will be on the conscience of the ruling regime in Ukraine. He urged the Ukrainian military not to carry out the criminal orders of the Ukrainian authorities, to lay down their arms and go home. Later, the Russian Defense Ministry stressed that the Russian Armed Forces do not inflict any strikes on the cities of Ukraine: military infrastructure is disabled by high-precision means. The civilian population, according to the department, is not in danger. The Ministry of Defense added that the Ukrainian border guards "do not offer any resistance", in some cases the Ukrainian military surrenders and after that they have the opportunity to return to their families. Published: Sevastian Kotov
