According to Putin, Kiev is trying to create blitzkrieg in Donbass and he has decided to recognize LPR and DPR immediately and sign the decrees.

Thats it, he really did it. This is going to be bad.

More……… responses to Putin.

A bit of history from Wionews.
" The story of the Ukraine - Russia crisis does not begin in 2021, or 2014, it begins in the 9th Century. "

Putin has formally recognised the independence of the two Ukrainian republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.

If that includes their full territory it extends deep into Ukraine including the port city of Mariupol.

This breeches the Minsk agreement and, according the previous statements of the Ukranaian government, constitutes a declaration of war.

Expect the tanks to already be rolling to “defend“ the republics.

Reminds me of Pearl Harbour, diplomats still talking as the Japanese fleet was on the way

Now this is a blast from the past: these agreements are the exact wordings of the agreement between the USSR and Finland during the cold war. This in essence means that either party may propose mutual military exercises and request for military assistance. In all the honesty I thought I'd never see this again. Now all it takes is LPR and/orDPR ask for brotherly help and the Soviet Russian forces will be there, on Ukrainian soil. If Ukrainians try to protect their sovereignty, all hell breaks loose.

TASS: Putin signed decrees recognizing the LPR and the DPR.

Putin and Pushilin signed an agreement on friendship, cooperation and assistance between the Russian Federation and the DPR.

Putin and Pasechnik signed an agreement on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance between the Russian Federation and the LPR in the Kremlin.

Putin congratulated the heads of the DPR and LPR on the signing of friendship treaties with Russia.

https://tass.ru/politika/13792297

If ever there was a time to hack the Russian TV system it was tonight, the thought of Putin being replaced by a spitting image puppet telling the locals the truth would have been priceless.

Russia's move would be flagrant breach of international law - UK PM

UK PM Boris Johnson has just been asked about Vladimir Putin's move at a Covid news conference.

He says that recognising the self-declared republics in eastern Ukraine would be "plainly in breach of international law".

"It's a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine," he says. "It is a repudiation of the Minsk process and the Minsk agreements and I think it's a very ill omen and a very dark sign."
He is more than welcome to pull back UK's recognition of Kosovo.

Czechoslovakia, 1938. Putin now in Hitler’s shoes…

Evacuation in progress?

And so it begins. I wonder if future generations (if there are any...) will look through textbooks and see this as the way that WWIII started?

I despair at the repisals of the West to Putins announcement today...sanctions. Really?

This is precisely why I voted for Brexit - the EU is a quagmire of beaurocrats and paper pushers. They actually believe a nation like Russia can be cowered with paper threats and denial of access to markets. They are so pathetically naiive in their views that I really do not even know where to start. Nobody else cares about their stupid laws and quotas - why should Putin care about threats from nations that he may well believe will not even exist in the near future? The World Order was forged, and history is written by, the winners. The geographic map was formed by wars and victory, not by feeble threats of 'sanctions'. Europe has become weak beyond belief and the New World Order will hand them their asses on a plate I regret to say. Russia and China understand true strength - Europe understands beaurocracy and vacillation. Frankly Europe is about to reap what it has sowed.

The only silver lining I can see is that in the conflagration that will shortly ensue, we have Boris Johnson as the PM, to lead us through. It is well known that Russia still possesses some of the world's foremost spying and hacking capabilities, and it is extremely likely in my view that his plans and secret meetings will be known to them. Fortunately for us, the man is physically incapable of telling the truth and has no moral compass whatsoever. I almost pity the poor Russian analyst who has to decipher his intentions from intercepted messages and report to his superior...' he could be lying, or he could be bluffing...all we know for sure is that he is not telling the truth...but basically we have no idea what he will do comrade...he is Boris. I cannot believe that the man to beat Russian intelligence is called Boris...'. They cannot even apply the principle of 'what would a person of character and moral standing do?', because he is neither.

I never thought that the lying, contemptuous and frankly abhorrent excuse for a human being that is Boris Johnson would have a purpose, but I was wrong. He may indeed be the man for the moment.

Well Baldeep, It's nice to see your support for the west. Which democratically elected leader are you going to pull apart next? You'd better have your exit plan in place, in case it all goes wrong. The Gulags can be chilly.

There you go, comparing him to Churchill in so many respects it’s uncanny….

Exit paln already executed. Got the hell out of Europe and live in a much 'bigger' place with a whole lot of nothing to disappear into...The writing was on the wall 4 years ago, and for that reason I packed the family and got out of Dodge - this was so blatantly obvious it is ridiculous that people seem surpised by it. That said, my wife is Russian so I have a bit of a home-court advantage when it comes to knowing what Russia was always going to do.

But Europe knew, and so did Boris. They put paperwork and beaurocracy ahead of strength - lets see how that works out. I am not slating European leaders per se, just speaking the irrefutable facts - Europe is about to get exactly what it has brought upon itself.

Europe need to be strong, and stand up to bullies, but it chose to write laws about the strenght of vacuum cleaners and the rules for grooming dogs, whilst ignoring inernational security.

We reap what we sow.

I think fab777 has it right. We all know what happened to Hitler.

Chatted to a grey-haired, very well connected, older neighbour - while out walking dawgs a few weeks back.
He has close connections at Oz Fed Govt level.
He said "I hear via `certain people' that there is a strong view Putin will not stop at the Ukraine."
At the time I laughed quietly to myself and thought he was being overly dramatic and pessimistic.
Now I'm not so sure.