Russian troops now number at least 40,000 in Crimea, with another 40,000 in regions along the border, which equates to roughly 10 percent of the country's entire military force, NBC News reported last week. That conflict has already cost nearly 14,000 lives. Tensions between the two nations have since reached their highest levels since 2014, when Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula and large-scale fighting broke out in the country's east. In recent days, Russia has amassed the largest concentration of forces in the region in years, raising concerns that the country may plan to invade. and NATO have employed "provocative actions," with at least two warships in the Black Sea, The Hill reported, due to increasing tensions between the two nations.
"It is impossible to bring peace on a tank," Zelensky said in Russian, before adding: "I am ready to invite you to meet anywhere in the Ukrainian Donbas where there is war." During his speech, Zelensky addressed Putin directly, urging him to meet for a peace summit in Donbas, a war-torn region where Ukraine's military has battled Russian-backed separatists for years. Zelensky's statements come on the eve of Russian President Vladimir Putin's annual state of the union address Wednesday. Is it ready for it? Yes," Zelensky said during a Tuesday address, according to The New York Times." Our principle is simple: Ukraine does not start a war first, but Ukraine always stands to the last man." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday night and warned his citizens that the country would "stand to the last man" in the event of a war with Russia, as tensions continue to build along the border between the two nations.