The decree “will also give authority to impose sanctions on anyone determined to operate in those areas of Ukraine,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement.
Psaki assured that more measures will be taken, saying that these are independent of the sanctions that the United States and its allies have been preparing if Russia invades Ukraine.
Donetks and Lugansk, the separatist republics at the center of the conflict
The pro-Russian breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, whose independence Moscow recognized on Monday, are located in the Russophone mining area of Donbas (eastern Ukraine) and have been outside Kiev’s control since 2014.
The war between the separatists and the Kiev authorities has left more than 14,000 dead.
Donetsk (formerly known as Stalino) is the main city of the Donbas mining area, as well as one of the main metallurgical centers of Ukraine. It has a population of two million inhabitants.
Lugansk (formerly Voroshilovgrad), an industrial city, has 1.5 million inhabitants.
The Donbas basin, bordering Russia on the northern shore of the Black Sea, has huge coal reserves.
The presence of Russian-speakers in the region is related to the large number of Russian workers sent there after World War II, during the Soviet period.
The conflict between Ukrainian forces and Donetsk and Lugansk separatists erupted eight years ago, following Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula.
Its independence, proclaimed in a referendum, is not recognized by the international community.
Ukraine and Western countries accuse Russia of supporting pro-Russian separatists militarily and financially. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Monday that he recognized its independence.
Donbas is also at the center of a cultural battle between Kiev and Moscow, which argues that the region, along with much of eastern Ukraine, is populated by Russian-speakers who must be protected from Ukrainian nationalism.
The resolution of the conflict, foreseen in the 2015 Minsk agreements, is at an impasse, since the Ukrainian government and the separatists accuse each other of not respecting them.
Although several truces were established, they were rendered obsolete by repeated violations by the parties to the conflict.
The political part of the agreements, which provides for broad autonomy for the rebellious regions and the holding of local elections under Ukrainian law, remains a dead letter, with the warring parties blaming each other for failure.
Moscow’s recognition on Monday of the breakaway regions’ independence is “a flagrant violation of Ukrainian sovereignty” and a “repudiation” of the Minsk agreements, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.
Denis Pushilinelected in 2018 in a vote denounced by Kiev, leads the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR).
Leonid Pasechnik heads the self-proclaimed Luhansk Republic (LNR).
Many warlords and separatist leaders have been killed in recent years in attacks, victims of internecine fighting or operations by the Ukrainian special services, according to unverifiable accounts.
The most prominent case is that of former Donetsk strongman Alexander Zakharchenko, who was killed in a 2018 explosion.
Source: Ambito
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