Russian Forces Are Now Authorized To Use Force In Ukraine
"Russia's parliament has approved the use of military force in Ukraine, an authorization
that President Vladimir Putin could potentially be used to launch a larger military
intervention into that country. This comes a day after Russia sent troops into two
separatist areas of eastern Ukraine's Donbas region shortly after recognizing them as
independent countries. The U.S. government has now termed that deployment an
invasion, which may trigger the imposition of an array of major sanctions on Russia.
You can read more on what has already transpired recently in The War Zone's previous
reporting on this crisis.
Putin sent a letter seeking this authority to the upper house of Russia's parliament, or
Duma, earlier today, a proposal that lawmakers quickly rubber-stamped. If nothing else,
this will give Russian troops deployed in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic
and Luhansk People's Republic, or DNR and LNR respectively, the ability to use force
against threats in those areas. Though this is largely a formality, it is still a significant
one. It would seem likely that, at least in principle, this would also authorize the use of
Russian forces outside of the DNR and LNR to support forces there, as well as
potentially engage targets elsewhere in Ukraine as part of a larger intervention."
See:
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...rce-in-ukraine