Putin Authorized to Use Military Outside Russia, Edging Europe Toward War

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been granted authorization to use the nation's military outside of Russia, further bolstering fears of an imminent invasion into Ukraine.

Putin has also called for Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, to be recognized as part of Russia, as well as all weapons shipments to Ukraine and Ukraine's NATO bid to be halted.

A Russian military deployment to rebel regions in eastern Ukraine was formalized under the request in the Russian leader's letter to the upper house of parliament, the Associated Press reported. Lawmakers provided quick approval for the request during a session on Tuesday.

The move came the day after Putin recognized the autonomy of the two pro-Russia separatist regions in Ukraine, which angered leaders and officials across the globe. Russian troops have already moved into the rebel areas in eastern Ukraine, according to several European leaders, but it was not immediately clear how large their presence is in the nation.

The upper house of Russia's parliament, also called the Federation Council, voted unanimously Tuesday to permit Putin to use military force outside of Russia. Valentina Matvienko, the upper house's speaker, said before the vote that by approving Putin's request, "we assume they will be peacekeeping forces - forces designed to maintain peace and stability" in the Ukraine separatist regions.

While speaking at a briefing in Moscow, Putin did not give a straight answer on whether the Russian forces would be sent to the separatist regions or elsewhere.

"I didn't say they will go there straight after our meeting," he said.

He added that whether the troops would be deployed to Ukraine hinged on the situation on the ground.

After initially refraining from calling the movement of Russian troops into eastern Ukraine an "invasion," the White House switched course Tuesday. Jon Finer, the U.S. deputy national security adviser, said in an interview on CNN that the administration thinks Russia's actions mark the "beginning of an invasion."

"An invasion is an invasion and that is what is underway," he said.

Finer also said that the White House plans to announce sanctions Tuesday against Russia in response to the "egregious step they took yesterday away from diplomacy and down the path for war."

"I believe that what Russia has done has made a diplomatic path much harder to walk down and much less likely," Finer said. "We've been in close consultation with our partners about what the next diplomatic step should be, but they have closed the door even further to diplomacy by the way that they have conducted their business yesterday."

Ukraine's rebel regions have been in conflict for eight years, unrest that has seen nearly 14,000 people killed. Both Ukraine and Western allies have long said that Russia had troops fighting in the Ukraine regions, but Russia has refuted the accusations.

President Joe Biden signed an executive order Tuesday night authorizing new investment, trade and financing restrictions on the two pro-Russia regions in Ukraine after Putin recognized their autonomy. The president is scheduled to speak on the Russia-Ukraine situation Tuesday afternoon and potentially announce the sanctions teased by Finer.

Update 2/22/22, 12:20 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information and background.