Russia extends military exercises in Belarus near Ukraine border

US Secretary of State says Ukraine is ‘on the brink of an invasion’

Russian President Vladimir Putin signs documents recognising two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent. AFP

A Ukrainian soldier walks past fragments of a mortar shell amid fighting near the front line in Travneve, Donetsk region. Reuters

People wave Russian flags while celebrating Moscow's recognition of the self-proclaimed republic's independence, in Donetsk. AP

Protesters gather at the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry in Kiev, calling on the EU to impose additional sanctions against Russia. Getty Images

Members of the security forces walk in an underpass at a railway station in Kiev. Getty Images

A Ukrainian soldier on the front line near the village of Travneve, in Donetsk. Reuters

Alisa, 38, a media relations specialist, takes part in a combat skills training for civilians near Kiev. Reuters

Alisa poses with a gun at her home near Kiev. Reuters

A young girl takes part in a rally in defence of 'Ukraine, Europe and democratic values', organised by the Association of Ukrainians in Portugal, outside the Russian Consulate in Porto, Portugal. EPA

A Ukrainian soldier takes time out to play with dogs on the front line near the city of Novoluhanske, in Donetsk. Reuters

People gather under the Ukrainian flag for a Day of Solidarity with Ukraine at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. AFP

Residents of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic cross from Ukraine into Russia, after it was announced that women and children would be led to the Rostov region due to rising tension in the area. EPA

After the evacuation of separatist-controlled regions of eastern Ukraine, people complete documents in a temporary accommodation centre in Rostov, Russia. Reuters

War veterans and volunteers train civilians in handling weapons on one of Kiev's city beaches. AFP

Russian and Belarusian helicopters taking part in a joint military exercise of the allied countries’ armed forces. EPA

Ukrainian National Guard soldiers at a mobile checkpoint together with the Ukrainian Security Service agents and police officers during a joint operation in Kharkiv, Ukraine. AP

US President Joe Biden delivers a national update on the situation at the Russia-Ukraine border at the White House in Washington, DC. AFP

A Polish soldier uses his phone, as US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak visit the Air Base in Powidz, Poland. Reuters

Mr Austin, left, addresses US troops stationed at the Powidz Air Base in Poland. AP Photo

A woman walks to board a bus, arranged to evacuate local residents, in the rebel-controlled city of Donetsk, Ukraine. Reuters

A satellite image shows an overview of helicopter deployments near Lake Donuzlav in Crimea, Ukraine. Reuters

A Ukrainian Military Forces serviceman looks through a spyglass on the front line with Russia-backed separatists not far from Novolugansk in the Donetsk region. AFP

A serviceman keeps position on the front line. AFP

A Ukrainian frontier guard patrols along the border with Russia, some 40km from the city of Kharkiv. AFP

US President Joe Biden speaks to the media about Russia's buildup on the Ukrainian border as he leaves the White House in Washington. EPA

A Ukrainian frontier guard stands at a check point. AFP

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio enter a hall during a meeting in Moscow. Reuters

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken addresses the United Nations Security Council. AP Photo

An elderly lady walks by as members of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination survey damage to a house from artillery shell that landed in Vrubivka, eastern Ukraine. AP Photo

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives for an extraordinary meeting of EU leaders to discuss Ukraine at the European Council building in Brussels. AP Photo

A local resident boards a train at a suburban area of Kiev. Reuters

A woman stands among debris after the reported shelling of a nursery in the settlement of Stanytsia Luhanska, Ukraine. AFP

A protester shouts slogans during a demonstration outside the Ukrainian parliament in Kiev against high government taxes. AFP

A member of the 82nd Airborne Division of the US Army rests ahead of deployment to Poland from Fort Bragg in the US. AP Photo

Members of the 82nd Airborne Division of the US Army clean weaponry ahead of deployment to Poland. AP Photo

Live updates: follow the latest news on Russia-Ukraine

Russia has extended military exercises in Belarus near the Ukrainian border, as Kiev’s president called for a ceasefire in the east of the country amid intensified fighting between Ukraine’s military and pro-Russian separatists.

The presence of about 30,000 Russian soldiers in Belarus has raised fears in some western capitals that they could be used as part of a larger force to invade Ukraine. Russia denies any intention to do so.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said “everything we’re seeing suggests that this is dead serious, that we are on the brink of an invasion”.

Belarus’s defence ministry said the extension of the drills, which were supposed to end on Sunday, was because of an “increase in military activity” near the Belarusian and Russian borders and the escalation of fighting in Donbas, eastern Ukraine.

More than 6,600 people have fled Donetsk, and about 25,000 people have left Luhansk, with 10,000 preparing to leave, separatist officials said on Saturday.

Russia, which has massed an estimated 150,000 soldiers, warplanes and equipment on the Ukrainian border, has been threatened by the West with heavy economic sanctions if it invades its neighbour.

Diplomatic efforts to find a way forward have so far yielded little. Mr Blinken told CNN on Sunday that US President Joe Biden was willing to meet Russia’s Vladimir Putin “at any time” to defuse tension.

French President Emmanuel Macron called Mr Putin on Sunday.

They spoke for 105 minutes, which the Elysee said represented “the final possible and necessary efforts to avoid a major conflict in Ukraine”. Mr Macron then spoke to Mr Zelenskyy.

A Kremlin readout of the call said Mr Putin blamed Ukrainian “provocations” for the escalation in tension but that “the presidents believe it is important to intensify efforts to find solutions through diplomatic means”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the repeated warnings by the West that Russia was about to invade Ukraine were provocative.

“The fact is that this directly leads to an increase in tension. And when tension is escalated to the maximum, as it is now, for example, on the line of contact [in eastern Ukraine], then any spark, any unplanned incident or any minor planned provocation can lead to irreparable consequences,” Mr Peskov said.

“So all this has – may have – detrimental consequences. The daily exercise of announcing a date for Russia to invade Ukraine is a very bad practice.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country desired “intensifying the peace process” and talks with Russia.

European Council chief Charles Michel said that “the big question remains: does the Kremlin want dialogue?” He then referred to claims from Russia last week that it had withdrawn some troops from the Ukrainian border.

“A few days ago, their words offered a very, very small ray of hope, but their actions take the form of continued military build-up, with serious incidents in the Donbas, including today.”

“We cannot forever offer an olive branch while Russia conducts missile tests and continues to amass troops,” Mr Michel told the Munich Security Conference on Sunday.

“One thing is certain: if there is further military aggression, we will react with massive sanctions.”

Lidia, 92, a Ukrainian who has lived here during the time of the conflict, stands at the entrance to her house in the territory controlled by pro-Russian militants, near the front line with Ukrainian government forces in Luhansk, Ukraine. AP

Olga Matvienko, an inspector at the migration service office, in Donetsk, Ukraine, says the number of people applying for Russian passports has increased in recent weeks. AP

Valentyna Konstantynovska, 79, is taught to use a weapon during training for civilians, organised by the Azov Special Forces Unit of Ukraine's National Guard, in Donetsk. AP

Ukrainian pensioner Lidiya Silina, 87, at her house near the border between Belarus and Ukraine. Russia has stationed troops in Belarus in recent weeks. AFP

Ukrainian teenagers dig trenches for soldiers facing off with Russian-backed separatists, in the Mariupol region. AFP

A young woman handles a weapon during basic combat training for civilians, in Mariupol. AP

A small child struggles to remove ammunition from a clip during a basic combat training for civilians, in Mariupol. AP

Civilians are being trained in Mariupol, where President Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to mark what he had declared Ukraine's 'Day of Unity'. AP

A plane set as a monument to a former military base near the Three Sisters border crossing between, Ukraine, Russia and Belarus, in Senkivka, Ukraine. Getty Images

A military instructor teaches a schoolboy to shoot with Kalashnikov rifles, during a training session in Lviv. AFP

A salesperson works in a grocery store in Orlivka. Tensions with Russia have hit the economy hard, Ukrainian authorities say. Getty Images

A child on a swing with his grandmother in Prymorsk, Ukraine, as Russian forces conduct large-scale military exercises in Belarus, across the border. Getty Images

Pensioner Viktor collects firewood in Novokostyantynivka. European natural gas prices surged as the US rejected Russia’s claims that it was pulling back troops. Getty Images

A fisherman tests his new fishing rod on a beach in Prymorsk, Ukraine. Getty Images

A customer in a barber shop in Kiev. Bloomberg

Passengers travel on a train in Kiev. Ukrainians have gone back to work, but are “not naive to the fact of how serious the situation is”, reports say. Bloomberg

Shoppers in a supermarket in Kiev. Bloomberg

A large street mural in Kiev. Getty Images

A woman walks past a vendor on a street in the Ukrainian capital. Getty Images

Ania, 67, a Ukrainian, gestures on the pedestrian border cross in Medyka, south-east Poland. AFP

A skateboarder performs a trick behind a mural of poet and activist Vasyl Stus, in Kiev. Getty Images

A woman gets her hair done at a beauty salon in Kiev. Getty Images

A man works out at Kiev's popular outdoor gym. Getty Images

A woman works in a gun shop in the capital. Getty Images

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, while stating that sanctions would hit Russia “very, very hard,” conceded the threat may not be enough.

“We have to accept at the moment that Vladimir Putin is possibly thinking illogically about this and doesn’t see the disaster ahead,” he told the BBC on Sunday.

Referring to the Russian troop build-up, Mr Johnson said the “plan that we are seeing is for something that could be really the biggest war in Europe since 1945 just in terms of sheer scale”.

Mr Johnson said US President Joe Biden had briefed allies on Friday about the potential plans Russia had for an invasion.

“You’re looking at not just an invasion through the east, through the Donbas, but according to the intelligence that we’re seeing, coming down from the north, down from Belarus, and actually encircling Kiev itself, as Joe Biden explained to a lot of us,” he said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the West should impose some of the sanctions now, rather than waiting for an invasion.

“Russia has to be stopped right now. We see how events are unfolding,” he said.

The focus in recent days has been on the chunk of eastern Ukraine that Russian-backed rebels seized in 2014, the year Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

More than 14,000 people have been killed in the conflict in the east since then.