Shafaq News/ The leader of the separatists in the Donbass region, eastern Ukraine, announced the beginning of the evacuation of civilians to Russia due to fears of a large-scale conflict.

“The large-scale evacuation of civilians to the Russian Federation is being held from today, in which women, children and the elderly will be given priority to move first,” said Denis Pushilin, leader of the Donetsk People’s Republic. DPR) self-proclaimed, posted on Telegram on February 18.

Pushilin accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of ordering troops to launch an attack on the DPR.

He said that Russian officials and the government of the border Rostov province are ready to receive civilians in Donetsk and have prepared a “receiving place” for them. Pushilin also affirmed that the DPR is always in a state of combat readiness and capable of protecting civilians, but urged the public to listen and cooperate with the evacuation plan.

“The temporary evacuation will protect the lives and health of you and your loved ones,” Pushilin said.

On the same day, the leader of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) self-proclaimed Leonid Pasechnik also announced the evacuation of civilians through Russia, saying that he had instructed his subordinates to implement. Pasechnik also called on those who can afford to hold guns to stay and defend their homeland.

The evacuation announcement was issued by the DPR and LPR leaders amid the recent escalation of clashes between government troops and separatists in eastern Ukraine. One source said shelling between the warring parties had recently broken out the most since 2015.

Nearly 600 explosions were recorded on the morning of February 18 in the Donbass region, up 100 from a day earlier, some of which involved 152 mm, 122 mm artillery shells and large mortars. The tank fired at least four rounds of artillery fire, the source said.

“They’re firing, all sides with every weapon they have,” the source said. “This has never happened after 2014-2015.”

However, Ukrainian officials denied this, saying there had been no reported deaths in recent days, while deadly clashes had occurred during the implementation of the ceasefire signed in 2015.

Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said in a session of parliament today that the country is strengthening its defense capabilities, but “has no intention of launching a military operation against the separatists in the east or on the Crimean peninsula.” 

Fighting in the Donbass region recently increased after Ukraine received many weapons from the US and NATO members. The weapons arrived amid heightened tensions after the United States and the West accused Russia of amassing more than 100,000 troops near the border and planning an invasion of Ukraine.

Russia denied, asserting that all military activities close to the western border are an internal matter and only for the purpose of rehearsals against the threat from the scenario of NATO expansion to the east, and criticized the US and its allies. exaggerate the danger of war.

Before Russia’s deployment, the US sent warships and B-1B bombers to participate in NATO’s “unplanned exercises” in the Black Sea, with two members of the alliance, Turkey and Romania, and Ukraine.

Russia on February 16 outlined five steps to resolve the conflict in the Donbass, including forcing Ukraine to comply with the Minsk agreement and stopping the supply of weapons to this Eastern European country. Russia also called on the West to withdraw its military advisers and stop all exercises between Ukraine and NATO, and then withdraw all foreign weapons transferred here.