![Click to enlarge Duma lower house parliament Russia](/image/s31/637259/origin_1.jpg)
If the resolution is approved by Putin, it would essentially give diplomatic recognition to the regions and treat them as independent states from Ukraine. Russian-backed separatists have been fighting with Ukrainian government forces since 2014 in Luhansk and Donetsk.
Such an act by Moscow would dramatically escalate tensions at a time when the world is on edge over fears Russia could invade its neighbour.
Parliament's move was met with swift international criticism.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that recognizing Donetsk and Luhank as independent would be "a violation of international law and the territorial integrity and authority of Ukraine," as well as of the Minsk peace agreements.
"There is no doubt that Donetsk and Luhansk is part of Ukraine within internationally recognized borders," he said.
The European Union "strongly condemns" the State Duma's request to Putin, foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.
Comment: Funny. Those standards didn't apply to Kosovo.
- The West supports independence when it suits them: A look at 5 referendums that posed no problems
- Obama ignorance exposed: states Kosovo left Serbia only after referendum, but there was NO referendum at all
- Serbia's president tells RT a 'Pandora's box' was opened when EU recognized Kosovo, not by attempt to mend ties
- Why isn't NATO bombing Madrid like it did Yugoslavia?
- Give war a chance! NATO will establish its first air base in Western Balkans
- Citing Kosovo precedent, Crimea's parliament declares independence from Ukraine ahead of referendum
The State Duma, Russia's lower house, overwhelming voted on Tuesday to send the document to the president. Duma leader Vyacheslav Volodin said the proposal would be on Putin's desk immediately.
A Kremlin spokesperson said that the State Duma reflects the will of the Russian people, but emphasized that Putin had yet to take a position on the issue.
The Russian rouble is already the common currency in Luhansk and Donetsk. Russia has given hundreds of thousands of people citizenship there and is heavily involved in area's social services and economy.
The Duma's request was met with enthusiasm by the separatists.
"This is a long-awaited decision by the citizens of the Donetsk People's Republic and Russia," said Vladimir Antonov, who describes himself as the region's deputy prime minister.
The government in Kiev, however, condemned the resolution.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Russian recognition of the separatist regions would be taken as evidence that Moscow has abandoned the Minsk peace agreements.
Comment: On the contrary, it is Ukraine that abandoned the agreements. Or more precisely, never implemented them in the first place.
- Once again Ukraine fails to uphold Minsk agreements, continues shelling Donbass
- Ukraine refuses to negotiate with the DPR and LPR, thus publicly disavowing the Minsk agreements
- Ex Right Sector head reveals two-faced Minsk approach: "Play 'Minsk' to buy time, then clean up filth in Donbass"
- Minsk agreements are dead confirms Ukraine's Pavlo Klimkin
- French MP says Ukraine should be sanctioned for failure to implement Minsk agreements
The Minsk plan was agreed under Franco-German mediation in 2015 and provides for the reintegration of the pro-Russian separatist areas into Ukraine with far-reaching autonomy.
It has never been fully implemented and the sides frequently disagree on its terms.
Despite ceasefire attempts, Western-equipped Ukrainian government forces have been fighting Russian-backed separatists in the regions near the Russian border since 2014.
According to UN estimates, more than 14,000 people have been killed since then, mostly in the separatist-held areas.
Vladimir Putin, during a press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Moscow, commented on the State Duma's appeal, saying he would proceed from doing everything to solve the problems of the Donbass, but the potential of the Minsk agreements was not still been exhausted, because Ucraine do not want to sign its.
We see every day that the Ukrainian armed forces bomb that region, kill individuals, even children with their snipers. When a massive military action against the Donbass population takes place, Russia can only intervene in defense of the people, then the war will start on SERIOUSLY.