The Russian president signed what he calls "accession treaties" that world powers refuse to recognize. It's his latest attempt to redraw the map of Europe at Ukraine's expense.
The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to formally annex four territories from Ukraine on Friday, following staged referendums that were condemned by the West.
While Ukraine's counteroffensive this month was hailed as stunning by military observers, Ukrainian troops tell NPR that Russian forces put up stiff resistance in parts of the Kharkiv region.
Orthodox Jews gathered in Uman to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, at the tomb of a rabbi who preached his vision of a joy-filled life in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Separatist leaders in occupied areas of Ukraine moved to join the Russian Federation — after claiming that the people there had chosen to join Russia, in referendums denounced by the West as a sham.
The so-called referendums — which Ukraine, the U.S. and others have denounced as shams — are widely viewed as an initial Kremlin move toward formal Russian annexation of the territories.
Men are fleeing Russia by land or air days after President Vladimir Putin said he was mobilizing more forces into Ukraine. NPR met Russians arriving in Turkey, where they don't need visas to enter.