Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Russia, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin, World News
Jess Hardiman
Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed his country’s invasion of Ukraine has ‘clear and noble’ goals, arguing the 'special military operation' was the ‘right decision’.
Speaking at an awards ceremony at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Russian Far East, Putin said Moscow had no choice but to launch its military operation – the main objective of which, he explained, was to save people in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, where separatists have been fighting since 2014.
According to Reuters, Putin said of Russia’s military campaign: "Its goals are absolutely clear and noble.”
The Russian leader continued: "On the one hand, we are helping and saving people, and on the other, we are simply taking measures to ensure the security of Russia itself. It's clear that we didn't have a choice. It was the right decision."
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Putin warned that attempts to isolate Russia would fail, paying tribute to the Soviet Union's Yuri Gagarin, who became the first man in space 61 years ago today, 12 April.
"The sanctions were total, the isolation was complete but the Soviet Union was still first in space," he added, according to Russian state television.
"We don't intend to be isolated. It is impossible to severely isolate anyone in the modern world – especially such a vast country as Russia."
Russian news agency TASS said Putin’s visit to the Vostochny Cosmodrome tied in with Cosmonautics Day, and marked his first regional trip this year.
The Kremlin press service explained that Putin would be presenting state awards to cosmonauts, and – together with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko – would meet with workers at the cosmodrome.
Afterwards, they were due to hold talks to ‘discuss bilateral relations and promoting integration cooperation within the framework of the Union State’, according to TASS.
As a result of Russia's so-called 'special military operation', millions of Ukrainians have been forced to flee their homes, with the United Nations estimating that more than 10 million people had already left due to the invasion by the end of March.
Filippo Grandi, the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees, said: "Among the responsibilities of those who wage war, everywhere in the world, is the suffering inflicted on civilians who are forced to flee their homes. The war in Ukraine is so devastating that 10 million have fled – either displaced inside the country, or as refugees abroad."
If you would like to donate to the Red Cross Emergency Appeal, which will help provide food, medicines and basic medical supplies, shelter and water to those in Ukraine, click here for more information