MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. Russia's State Duma (the lower house of parliament) Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin called on the citizens of Ukraine against taking part in the mobilization and also to urge their relatives, who serve in the country’s military, to lay down their weapons.
"I address the citizens of Ukraine: we have always and will always treat you as our brotherly nation," he wrote in a message on his Telegram channel. "Our country’s measures are aimed solely at protecting peace. We ask you not to take part in any type of mobilizations offered by the Kiev authorities."
"They [the authorities] are dependent and follow all instructions from Washington and Brussels," Volodin stated.
The senior Russian lawmaker also said that the special military operation pose no threat to civilians adding that Russia and Ukraine are united by their common history, culture and beliefs.
"Ask your close ones, who serve in the Ukrainian armed forces, to lay down their weapons," he continued. "They must not be protecting interests of NATO and the United States, and following criminal orders from Kiev’s anti-people regime."
Volodin also noted that Russia cannot stay being indifferent to the fate of Ukraine. "Let us all think about the future, because we are sharing it. We must live in a friendship and harmony and remember how our grandfathers and fathers fought together to achieve it."
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on Thursday morning that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in order to protect people "who have been suffering from abuse and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years." The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories.
Russia’s Defense Ministry reported later on Thursday that Russian troops were not delivering strikes against Ukrainian cities. It emphasized that Ukrainian military infrastructure was being destroyed by precision weapons.