Putin Declares Residents of Donbass Have Faced Genocide for Eight Years

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that the residents of Donbass have been subjected to genocide for eight years.

“We have reached a difficult time when our armed forces are conducting special military operations in Ukraine and Donbass. Let me remind you that at the very beginning, on the morning of February 24, I publicly and openly highlighted the reasons, and the main goal of Russia's actions is to help our people in Donbass, who have been subjected to real genocide for almost eight years through barbaric methods: blockades, large-scale punitive actions, terrorism, and constant artillery bombardments,” said Putin during a meeting on the socio-economic support of the subjects of the Russian Federation.

According to Putin, Kyiv has ignored and sabotaged the Minsk agreements for eight years, and publicly refused to implement them at the end of 2021.

“The authorities in Kyiv have not only ignored this over the years but also sabotaged the implementation of the Minsk package for the peaceful resolution of the crisis. Moreover, at the end of last year, they publicly refused to implement it,” the Russian president stated.