Putin declares captured regions part of Russia; Ukraine denies talks

Putin also urged Ukraine to sit down for peace talks but immediately insisted he won't discuss handing them back, opening a new escalatory phase of his seven-month invasion of the country.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed treaties Friday to annex parts of Ukraine in defiance of international law, saying Moscow would protect the newly incorporated regions by “all available means.” He also urged Ukraine to sit down for peace talks but immediately insisted he won't discuss handing them back, opening a new escalatory phase of his seven-month invasion of the country.
 

Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday Ukraine was formally applying for fast-track membership of the Nato military alliance and that Kyiv was ready for talks with Moscow, but not with President Vladimir Putin. The Ukrainian leader made his comments in a video which appeared intended as a forceful rebuttal to the Kremlin. "We are taking our decisive step by signing Ukraine's application for accelerated accession to NATO," Zelenskiy said in a video on Telegram.
 

The video showed Zelenskiy announcing the decision and then signing a document flanked by his prime minister and the speaker of parliament.
 

"Ukraine is ready for negotiations, but with a different Russian president," Zelenskiy said.
 

Kyiv and the West have rejected his land-grab in Ukraine. The European Union’s 27 member states said they will never recognize the illegal referendums that Russia organized “as a pretext for this further violation of Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.” 
 

President Vladimir Putin on Friday said that Russia is annexing four occupied regions in Ukraine “forever” and repeated warnings that Moscow will use all available means to defend the territories. 
 

European Union members “unequivocally” rejected the move in a joint statement. President Joe Biden has denounced Russia’s efforts as a “flagrant violation of the UN Charter and the basic principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

US slaps steep sanctions on Russia

The US on Friday imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia over its declared annexation of a swath of Ukraine, targeting hundreds of people and companies, including those in Russia's military-industrial complex and members of the legislature. "We will not stand by as Putin fraudulently attempts to annex parts of Ukraine," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement. Reuters