Ukraine has appealed to the UN General Assembly to stop Russia's "aggressive plans," as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the 193-member body that an expanded conflict "could see a scale and severity of need unseen for many years."
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the United Nations headquarters in New York, 22 February. Photo: AFP
The General Assembly met for its annual meeting on Ukraine, which coincides with escalating tensions over US accusations that Russia has deployed more than 150,000 troops near Ukraine's borders and is ready to invade.
Russia has denied it wants to invade Ukraine and accuses Washington and allies of hysteria.
Ukraine declared a state of emergency and told its citizens in Russia to flee, while Moscow began evacuating its Kyiv embassy in ominous signs for Ukrainians who fear an all-out Russian military onslaught.
Up to two million Ukrainians are believed to live permanently in Russia and many people have family in both countries.
Several Ukrainian government websites were down, the target of an apparent cyber-attack.
Shelling intensified in eastern Ukraine where Putin recognised the independence of Moscow-backed regions Donetsk and Luhansk, and deployed troops as "peacekeepers".
"No one will be able to sit out this crisis if President Putin decides that he can move forward," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
"Active diplomacy, strong political messages, tough economic sanctions and strengthening Ukraine can still force Moscow to abandon aggressive plans."
Washington and allies imposed the sanctions after Russia recognised breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent and ordered Russian troops there to "keep the peace."
Washington has dismissed that justification to deploy troops as "nonsense," and Guterres said they would not be "peacekeepers."
Guterres on Wednesday called for a ceasefire and return to the dialogue.
A Ukrainian soldier looks at debris after the reported shelling of a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska, 17 February. Photo: AFP / Aleksey Filippov
Britain's minister of state for South Asia and the Commonwealth, Tariq Ahmad, urged other countries to also sanction Russia: "The Kremlin must understand the strength of the world's condemnation of President Putin's war of choice."
The General Assembly meeting offers countries a chance to air their views, a move the United States and others hope will show that Russia is internationally isolated over its moves on Ukraine. The body will not take any action on Wednesday.
In 2014, the General Assembly adopted a resolution - with 100 votes in favour - declaring invalid a referendum on the status of Crimea, which Russia annexed. General Assembly resolutions carry political weight but are not legally binding.
EU leaders to hold summit
EU leaders will hold an emergency summit in Brussels tomorrow to discuss the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
In a letter to EU leaders, the head of the EU Council, Charles Michel, wrote:"It is important that we continue to be united and determined and jointly define our collective approach and actions."
He said Russia's "aggressive actions" had violated "international law and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine".
- Reuters / BBC