Ukraine President's Office

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the National Security and Defense Council has discussed the latest developments in eastern Ukraine at a meeting held Thursday afternoon.

The content of discussion remains classified, the head of state said in a televised address following the NSDC meeting, an UNIAN correspondent reports.

Read alsoBiden declares "national emergency" over threat posed by RussiaThe president said the top issue on the agenda was related to the situation in Donbas.

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"I can't reveal the details. The situation in Donbas is now under control. Indeed, there are certain issues. We are ready to address these issues. The Army is ready – that's the most important thing. We realize that mass media spin all kinds of reports so I'd like Ukrainian citizens to trust the official statements of our General Staff or the President's Office only," Zelensky said.

Escalation along Ukraine borders by Russia

  • In early March, Russia amassed 28 battalion tactical groups along the state border of Ukraine and in the temporarily occupied territories, also intending to deploy an additional 25 battalion tactical groups under the guise of forthcoming exercises, which poses a threat to Ukraine's military security.
  • According to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, invaders are reinforcing their outposts with reconnaissance groups and sniper teams, also employing war instructors from the Russian armed forces. Also, Russian occupation forces are keeping in combat readiness their artillery units, including in settlements across the occupied territory of Ukraine.
  • On March 31, The New York Times reported about Russia pulling 4,000 military to the border with Ukraine. Also, a video appeared showing a train loaded with Russian military hardware being transferred to the occupied Crimea across the Kerh Strait bridge.
  • Zelensky said Russia was trying to exert pressure on Ukraine by the latest muscle-flexing at its borders.
  • On April 8, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ruslan Khomchak, said the situation remains controlled, and that the Ukrainian military is ready to respond to any aggravation both in the temporarily occupied territory of Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and along the entire Ukrainian-Russian border.