Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed decrees paving the way for the occupied Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia to be formally annexed into Russia. The decrees, made public by the Kremlin, said Putin had recognised the two regions as independent territories, an intermediary step needed before Putin can go ahead with plans to announce on Friday that the regions are part of Russia. Read our live blog to see how the day's events unfolded. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
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4:25am: Kremlin says military campaign in Ukraine to continue at least until it controls all Donetsk region
The Kremlin on Wednesday said that the "special military operation" in Ukraine must continue until Russia takes full control of eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region.
In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the military campaign in Ukraine would continue "at a minimum" until the "liberation" of the "Donetsk people's republic", referring to the region's self-declared, Russian-backed administration.
9:45pm: Biden says US will never recognise Russia claims on Ukraine
President Joe Biden has said the US will "never, never, never" recognise Russia's claims on Ukraine's sovereign territory as Moscow prepares to annex some occupied areas of Ukraine.
Speaking to Pacific island leaders, Biden denounced the referendums that pro-Russian forces conducted in occupied areas of Ukraine as an "absolute sham", adding, "the results were manufactured in Moscow".
9:13pm: US Senate approves $12 billion in new aid for Ukraine
The US Senate has approved $12 billion in new economic and military aid for Ukraine as part of a stopgap extension of the federal budget into December.
The measure, agreed by senators of both parties, includes $3 billion for arms, supplies and salaries for Ukraine's military, and authorises President Joe Biden to direct the US Defense Department to take $3.7 billion worth of its own weapons and materiel to provide Ukraine.
It also provides $4.5 billion for Kyiv to keep the country's finances stable and keep the government running, providing services to the Ukrainian people.
8:20pm: 'Unauthorised drone activity' observed near Total North Sea installation
TotalEnergies has said it has observed "unauthorised drone activity" near one of its offshore oil and gas installations in the North Sea.
"There have been observations of unauthorised drone activity at the Halfdan B oil and gas field in the North Sea," a spokesperson said in a written comment, adding the activity had been observed on Wednesday.
"We have taken the necessary steps in accordance with our security procedures and are in close dialogue with the authorities."
7:30pm: Russian annexation of Ukraine regions would be 'dangerous escalation,' UN chief says
If Russia moves ahead with its plans to annex four Ukrainian regions, it would mark a "dangerous escalation" that would jeopardise the prospects for peace in the region, the United Nations Secretary-General said on Thursday.
"Any decision to proceed with the annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine would have no legal value and deserves to be condemned," Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters.
7:24pm: 'Putin is a fool': Audio clips of Russian soldiers phoning home
The New York Times has obtained intercepted calls made by Russian soldiers in Ukraine, including damning accounts of the execution of civilians.
"We’ve been told about the low morale in the Russian army in disarray beating a retreat. Now we hear it in the voices of these Russian soldiers," explains FRANCE 24's International Affairs Commentator Douglas Herbert. "These recordings paint a picture starkly at odds with the rosy propagandistic message being beamed night after night on Russian state TV at home," he added.
5:49pm: Ukrainian presidential advisor blasts 'Kremlin freak show' annexation
A political adviser to the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called Russia's planned annexation ceremony on Friday a "Kremlin freak show" that "does not make legal sense".
Mykhailo Podolyak denounced Russia's formal annexation of four occupied Ukrainian territories following discredited referendums. "The announced 'entrance ceremony' does not make any legal sense. Non-existent entities cannot enter a country which is disintegrating," said Podolyak on Twitter.
5:28pm: Putin says Ukraine conflict is a 'result of Soviet collapse'
Russian President Vladimir Putin has told a meeting of intelligence chiefs of former Soviet states that current conflicts in countries of the former USSR – including Ukraine – are due to the collapse of the Soviet Union.
"It is enough to look at what is happening now between Russia and Ukraine and what is happening on the borders of some other CIS countries. All this, of course, is the result of the collapse of the Soviet Union," Putin said in a televised meeting with th intelligence chiefs.
The CIS, or Commonwealth of Independent States, was formed following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991.
The Russian leader repeated his assertions that the West has provoked conflicts in the region. Putin blamed the West for provoking "colour revolutions", an allegation Ukraine and other former Soviet states have repeatedly denied.
5:17pm: Ukraine's top general discusses 'operational situation' with US European Command head
Ukraine's top general said he and the top US Army commander in Europe had discussed the war with Russia, and that he had received assurances of further support from Washington.
The generals spoke by telephone on the eve of Moscow's formal annexation of four Ukrainian regions, after what Kyiv and the West say were sham referendums staged at gunpoint in Russian-occupied territory.
"I had a conversation with General Christopher Cavoli, Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Commander of the United States European Command," General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
"We have shared thoughts on the operational situation, further plans and needs for weapons. I have shared with General Cavoli the vision of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine regarding the mobilisation in Russian federation. I have received encouraging esteem and assurances of further support," he said.
3:52pm: Zelensky to hold emergency security meeting on Friday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called an emergency meeting of top security and defence officials for Friday, according to a presidential spokesperson.
Serhiy Nykyforov announced the meeting on Facebook hours after the Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin would sign formal documents on Friday proclaiming Moscow's annexation of four Ukrainian regions following what Kyiv called sham referendums organised by Russia at gunpoint.
"President Volodymyr Zelenski has called an urgent meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine for tomorrow. The agenda and other details will be announced later," Nykyforov said.
2:44pm: ‘A violent takeover of a large swathe of Ukrainian territory’
Reporting from Kyiv, FRANCE 24’s Gulliver Cragg says Russia’s latest annexation bid is not unprecedented, since Moscow annexed Crimea in 2014 using the same playbook. “But now what they’re talking about is annexing a much larger territory – and also a territory in which there is clearly very strong resistance to Russian occupation,” he explained.
2:27pm: European leaders slam Moscow's annexation announcement
European leaders have denounced Russia's announcement that it will incorporate Ukraine's occupied four regions following discredited referendums.
Czech Republic Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, rejected as “absolutely unacceptable" what he called the “one-sided annexation" following a “fully falsified process with no legitimacy”.
Speaking on Czech public television, Lipansky dismissed the referendums as “a theatre play" and said that the four regions remain Ukrainian territory.
Italian Premier Mario Draghi has told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call that Italy will not recognise the "illegal" referendums, according to a statement from his office.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said Denmark “will never recognise any annexation attempt”.
12:55pm: '60 to 70 percent' of Bucha's residents have returned
FRANCE 24's Gulliver Cragg reports from Bucha on the reconstruction and repatriation efforts in the city after its liberation from Russian occupation last March. Although several areas of the city remain devastated and the "threat of a Russian nuclear strike" looms over the Kyiv region, the residents seem to be proceeding with "determination".
12:31pm: Finland will shut border to Russian tourists from midnight
Finland will close its border to Russian tourists from midnight local time (2100 GMT), which is expected to lead to a significant drop in cross-border traffic, the government said on Thursday.
Entry for family visits, as well as for work and studies, will still be permitted, Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told a news conference.
12:00pm: Putin to preside over ceremony adding Ukrainian territories to Russia
President Vladimir Putin will hold a signing ceremony in the Kremlin on Friday to add territories of Ukraine into Russia, his spokesman said. Russian-backed officials in four regions in Ukraine said referendums showed overwhelming majorities of their populations had voted to join Russia in votes slammed by Ukraine and the West as a "sham".
Putin will also give a major speech on Friday following the signing ceremony. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the heads of the four regions will sign treaties to join Russia during the ceremony.
The US and its Western allies have sharply condemned the referendums. The EU slammed the votes as "illegal" and said the results were "falsified" while the UK, Canada and Germany also refused to recognise them.
11:20am: Attacks on 'critical infrastructure' would meet 'determined response', NATO says
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday that a deliberate attack against allies' infrastructure would be met with a determined response, following what the alliance called acts of "sabotage" on the Nord Stream pipelines.
"All currently available information indicates that this is the result of deliberate, reckless, and irresponsible acts of sabotage," NATO said in a statement.
"We, as Allies, have committed to prepare for, deter and defend against the coercive use of energy and other hybrid tactics by state and non-state actors. Any deliberate attack against Allies’ critical infrastructure would be met with a united and determined response," the statement said.
7:50am: Fourth leak found on Nord Stream pipelines, Swedish coast guard says
Sweden's coast guard discovered a fourth gas leak on the damaged Nord Stream pipelines earlier this week, a spokesperson told the Svenska Dagbladet newspaper.
The European Union suspects sabotage was behind the gas leaks on the subsea Russian pipelines to Europe and has promised a "robust" response to any intentional disruption of its energy infrastructure.
"Two of these four are in Sweden's exclusive economic zone," coast guard spokesperson Jenny Larsson told the paper late on Wednesday. The other two breaches are in the Danish exclusive economic zone.
Both pipelines were filled with gas that has been spewing into the Baltic Sea since Monday's ruptures.
7:50am: Finland boosts surveillance after blasts at Nord Stream gas pipelines
Finland is watching its territorial waters very closely following explosions at the two Nord Stream gas pipelines, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday.
Marin told reporters that Finland, which shares the European Union’s longest land border with Russia, considers the explosions “grave news” and “extremely worrying”. The pipelines were built by Russia and European partners.
“Finnish authorities and the government is watching the situation very closely. We are monitoring the situation in the Finnish economic area and our territorial waters,” Marin said.
Defence Minister Antti Kaikkonen said Finland had not detected increased military activity in its vicinity in recent days but keeps close contact with Nordic neighbours and NATO allies to exchange information.
The government said it will move to heavily restrict the transit of Russian citizens holding tourist visas to other countries in the Schengen region via Finland, refusing to give a date of enforcement before an official decision over the matter expected on Thursday.
The EU said it suspected sabotage was behind the gas leaks under the Baltic Sea. Russia has also said sabotage was a possibility.
7:15am: Moscow-installed administrators of occupied territories ask Putin for incorporation into Russia
The Moscow-installed administrators of four Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine have formally asked President Vladimir Putin to incorporate the areas into Russia.
Russian officials have suggested the incorporation is a formality.
“This should happen within a week,” Rodion Miroshnik, the Russia-installed ambassador to Moscow of the self-proclaimed Luhansk people’s republic, told the RIA state news agency.
“The main thing has already happened – the referendum has taken place. Therefore, let’s say: The locomotive has already started and it’s unlikely to be stopped.”
2:30am: US announces $1.1 billion more in military aid for Ukraine
The US will provide an additional $1.1 billion in military aid to Ukraine, with funding for 18 more advanced rocket systems and other weapons to counter drones that Russia has been using against Ukrainian troops, the Biden administration announced Wednesday.
The latest package is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds contracts to purchase weapons and equipment. And it brings the total of US aid to Ukraine to nearly $17 billion since the Biden administration took office.
The aid announcement comes as Russia moves to annex parts of Russian-occupied Ukraine that held Kremlin-orchestrated referendums on living under Moscow's rule. The votes were denounced by Kyiv and the West as illegal and rigged.
“We will not be deterred from supporting Ukraine, we will continue to stand with the Ukrainian people, and provide them with the security assistance they need to defend themselves, for as long as it takes,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Since the funding is for contracts for weapons and equipment, it is aimed at helping Ukraine secure its longer-term defence needs. It could take a year or two for Ukraine to get the systems. The US has used Pentagon drawdown authority to provide weapons more immediately.
10:42pm, September 28: Europe ramps up energy security after suspected sabotage
European companies are ramping up security around pipelines and energy prices are climbing again as the suspected sabotage of two pipelines that deliver natural gas from Russia underscored the vulnerability of the continent’s energy infrastructure and prompted the EU to warn of possible retaliation.
Some European officials and energy experts have said Russia is likely to blame for any sabotage, although others cautioned against pointing fingers until investigators are able to determine what happened.
Russia has sharply curtailed natural gas shipments to Europe in retaliation for sanctions that the West put in place after its invasion of Ukraine. Russian energy giant Gazprom on Wednesday increased the pressure, threatening on Twitter to cease dealing with a Ukrainian company that controls one of the two remaining pipelines that ship Russian gas to Europe.
Coming on top of the possible sabotage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines, “that means a major escalation and readiness to escalate”, Agata Loskot-Strachota, senior fellow in energy policy at the Centre for Eastern Studies in Warsaw, told AP.
10:24pm: Zelensky thanks allies, works phone to rally support
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called a number of foreign leaders on Wednesday as Moscow looked poised to annex a swath of Ukrainian territory, and later thanked them for their support.
Zelensky spoke to the leaders of countries including the UK, Canada, Germany and Turkey to press demands for more military aid and tougher sanctions on Moscow after what Kyiv and the West denounced as illegal sham referendums in four partially Russian-occupied provinces in Ukraine.
"Thank you all for your clear and unequivocal support. Thank you all for understanding our position," Zelensky said in a late-night video address.
"Ukraine cannot and will not tolerate any attempts by Russia to seize any part of our land."
4:04pm: Germany will 'never recognise' territories annexed by Russia
Germany will not accept the results of the annexation votes organised by Moscow in the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call on Wednesday.
"Germany will never recognise the results of the sham referendums" in the regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, Scholz told Zelensky, according to the chancellor's spokesman Steffen Hebestreit.
Kremlin-installed authorities in the four Ukrainian regions under Russian control on Tuesday claimed victory in the votes, saying that preliminary results show a majority in favour of being annexed by Moscow.
Scholz and Zelensky discussed "possibilities for further support" from Germany, including the reconstruction of Ukraine, Hebestreit said in a read-out of the phone call.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP & Reuters)
