Ukraine says Putin's martial law decree doesn't change anything

The Ukrainian government reacted on Wednesday to Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement of martial law in the annexed Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Herson, and Zaporizhzhia.

Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to the Presidential Office of Ukraine, said in a statement on his social media account that Putin's decision would not change anything in Ukraine.

Podolyak, who reacted sharply, said, "The 'martial law' to be imposed in the territories occupied by Russia should be considered as the so-called legitimization of another plundering of the Ukrainian people's goods by way of 'regrouping'. This does not change anything for Ukraine. We continue to struggle for the liberation of our lands."

Oleksiy Danilov, the head of the Ukrainian Security and Defense Council, also said in a message he shared on social media that Putin's decision should be condemned by the United Nations.

Danilov criticized Putin's decree on martial law in the annexed regions of Ukraine, saying it was preparation for the mass forcible relocation of Ukrainian citizens into Russia's impoverished regions in order to change the ethnic makeup of the occupied territory.

"This is a crime that should be condemned by the UN. This crime was committed by Russia in Crimea and went unpunished."

Russian President Putin has signed a decree today announcing a martial law in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Herson, and Zaporijya regions of annexed Ukraine.