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Topics: Ukraine, Vladimir Putin, Russia
Poppy Bilderbeck
The enforcement of Vladimir Putin's martial law decree has seen Ukrainian residents' phones checked by Russian forces.
Since Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops across the border on 24 February, Russia is reported as having lost more soldiers than the US did in the whole of the Vietnam war.
Despite this, Russia still has control over certain areas of Ukraine, such as Zaporizhzhia - a city in the southeast of the country.
Earlier this month, Putin announced he would be implementing martial law in the four partially Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
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Addressing his security council via a televised statement, he said: "In this regard, let me remind you that in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, as well as in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, martial law was in effect before joining Russia.
"Now we need to formalize this regime within the framework of Russian legislation.
"Therefore, I signed a decree on the introduction of martial law in these four subjects of the Russian Federation, so it will be immediately sent to the Federation Council,
"We are working on solving very complex, large-scale tasks to ensure a reliable future for Russia, the future of our people."
Off the back of the implementation of martial law in the four regions, today (Thursday, 27 October) Russian official Vladimir Rogov announced: "From today in the Zaporizhzhia region, law enforcement officers have begun a selective preventing check of the mobile phones of citizens."
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