UK defence minister warns of consequences if Russia invades Ukraine Ukraine

"These are among the darkest hours of Europe since the Second World War," EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said. Mark, a 27-year-old sales executive, said he was ready to be called up to fight. “Our discussions were clear that a Russian invasion of Ukraine would be a strategic mistake, violating the most basic freedoms and sovereignty. https://euronewstop.co.uk/why-ukraine-is-important.html on the Ukrainian border continue to be fraught, with the US suggesting Moscow is preparing for a “false-flag operation” in order to spark an incursion into neighbouring territory.

• The threats facing Europe today are too pressing for our military to be reduced to this state.
• More than 14,000 people have died in the fighting that has occurred since 2014.
• Around 80% of the male population complete some form of military service.
• The Prime Minister has announced 1,000 more British troops will be put on alert in the UK, however, he said Nato is unwilling to send troops into Ukraine itself.

Exploiting its overwhelming superiority in land, sea and air forces, Russia is expected to attack simultaneously on several fronts, from the north-east, the Donbas and Crimea. Ground troops in Belarus, backed by airstrikes, would spearhead a lightning drive south to seize the capital, Kyiv. About 10 civilians are believed to have been killed, including six in an air strike in Brovary near the capital Kyiv. A man was also killed in shelling outside the major eastern city of Kharkiv. Earlier this month, its civil defence minister told a defence conference "there could be a war in Sweden".

Indeed, for all the foreboding about societal collapse, facing a common threat could give Britain a new-found sense of unity – something many Ukrainians speak of. Just as there was the “Clap for Carers” during the pandemic, similar rituals might take place for those serving at the front. And for every shirker or draft-dodger, others might take pride in national duty, be it manning a machine gun post or cleaning the streets. “We have become so comfortable here in Britain that it’s hard to imagine young people fighting, and when I went to Afghanistan a decade ago, I didn’t think the youngsters of would be up to much,” he said.

• Only aircraft deployed to protect energy facilities, or those carrying top Russian or foreign officials, will be allowed to fly with special permission in the designated zones, according to the Vedomosti daily newspaper.
• But European nations closer to Russian borders appear to be taking it more seriously.
• He urged Ukrainian soldiers in the combat zone to lay down their weapons and go home, but said clashes were inevitable and "only a question of time".

The war shows no signs of stopping and Vladimir Putin continues to make threats against Western involvement. Meanwhile Russia's currency, the rouble, fell to an all-time low against the dollar and the euro. Ukraine has declared martial law - which means the military takes control temporarily. It has cut diplomatic ties with Russia, offered weapons to anyone who wants them and declared an overnight curfew for Kyiv.

How a Russian invasion of Ukraine could spill over into Europe

Russia continues to impede access for humanitarian organisations to the millions of people in need. It orders its weapons from the DPRK, in violation of multiple resolutions agreed in this Chamber, under this Russian Foreign Minister’s instruction. Its purchase and use of Iranian drones involves both states violating a Security Council resolution. Colleagues, two years ago, Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. A 77-year-old woman was injured and hospitalised in an attack on the city of Vovchans’k.

President Putin ordering the use of nuclear weapons against the UK remains very unlikely, but is not impossible. What would happen if Russia decided to target the UK with nuclear weapons? Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not gone to plan, with Ukraine remaining vigilant two months after the attacks began. Many people in Kyiv have sought shelter in underground metro stations. Russia has begun a large-scale military attack on Ukraine, its southern neighbour, on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

They also promised to provide assistance to Ukraine if it "should become a victim of an act of aggression". But his remark lives on as a challenge to all policymakers thinking about whether to engage diplomatically - and even militarily - in a potential conflict between two foreign countries. Yet the only threat to any civilian in Ukraine continues to come from Russia.

The fear is that if Russia is allowed to invade Ukraine unresisted, that might act as a signal to other leaders that the days of Western powers intervening in other conflicts are over. Some migrants might stay in neighbouring Poland and eastern European countries, but some might head further west and eventually end up in the UK. But both of these demands would break key Nato principles, namely that the alliance should be open to any European country that wants to join and that all Nato members should be sovereign nations.