MOSCOW, February 18. /TASS/. The self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) announced on Friday they would organize the evacuation of civilians to Russia amid the escalation of the situation in Donbass.

Russia’s southern Rostov Region has reported that it is ready to receive Donbass residents. Meanwhile, the Kiev regime keeps denying reports of pending offensive operations in Donbass.

TASS has gathered material on the latest developments in Donbass.

Bombardments continue

The situation at the engagement line in the east of Ukraine escalated on Thursday morning. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics reported the most intensive bombardments by the Ukrainian military in recent months. There has been no data on casualties yet; however, it has been reported that the bombardments have damaged some civil infrastructure facilities.

According to the data of the DPR people’s militia, the Ukrainian military has opened fire at the republic’s territory 30 times since the beginning of February 18, leaving residents of the communities of Verkhnetoretskoye and Krasny Partizan without electric power. It was also reported that two sabotage acts were foiled at chemical facilities in the Gorlovka area.

The authorities of France and Germany that make part of the Normandy Four format along with Russia and Ukraine have also expressed their serious concern over the escalating situation.

Evacuation of civilians

DPR Head Denis Pushilin announced measures for the mass centralized evacuation of the republic’s residents to Russia in the wake of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s intentions "to give an order to the army shortly to switch to an offensive and implement the plan of invading the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics."

As Pushilin elaborated, under agreement with the Russian leadership, the Rostov Region is ready to receive and accommodate the republic’s citizens and they will be provided with the necessary. In the first place, women, children and the elderly will be evacuated, he said.

Following that, Lugansk has also announced the evacuation of its citizens: LPR Head Leonid Pasechnik has urged residents to move to Russia within the shortest time possible and called on all the men who can hold arms in their hands "to come to the defense of their land."

Commenting on the evacuation of Donbass residents, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out that he did not know whether these actions were agreed with Moscow. Meanwhile, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Ties with Compatriots Viktor Vodolatsky told TASS that the Rostov Region would cope with the task of receiving Donbass residents. The Crimean authorities have also stated their readiness to receive civilians being evacuated from the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics.

Stance by Russia and Ukraine

The Ukrainian authorities claim that they are not conducting offensive operations in the east of the country and have no relation to attempted subversive acts at Donbass chemical enterprises. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba assured that Kiev was fully committed "solely to diplomatic settlement."

Russian President Vladimir Putin who commented on the Donbass developments said that he regretted the escalation of the situation in the region and called on Kiev again to sit down at the negotiating table with Donbass representatives and agree upon measures of ending the conflict. "The sooner this happens, the better," the Russian leader emphasized.