A senior Russian MP has said he believes Russia intends to recognise separatist claims over the entirety of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Rebel forces currently control just over a third of the two regions in their self-declared Donestsk and Luhansk People's Republics. The rest is still under Ukrainian government control.

Leonid Kalashnikov, a Communist MP and head of the state Duma's regional affairs committee, told RIA news agency he thought Moscow would recognise both eastern regions,

"Recognition of the LPR and DPR will be within the borders of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions," Kalashnikov said, explaining that it would be clarified and decided in the coming days.

While Russian MPs are unlikely to know Putin's intentions, there is a fear in Ukraine that Russia will try to expand the territory controlled by the rebels, which would spark a bloody conflict.

The Health Secretary Sajid Javid is now speaking to BBC Breakfast.

He says the UK "would always prefer dialogue and will continue to do so but it's clear from president Putin's actions that he has chosen confrontation over dialogue".

He says the UK will put targeted sanctions on "individuals, companies and businesses with links to the Russian regime".

"I do think this is a huge moment right now for Europe... and we know that this is a real test for western Europe in particular now, for us to all come together, to work together in unity because we can all remember what happens when aggressors go unpunished."

The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will give a statement to Parliament on Ukraine later today, a UK minister has said.

Sajid Javid told Sky News Johnson would set out what we know about the current situation on the ground and what action the UK would take.

He says: "We have been very clear right from the start of this crisis that we wouldn't hesitate to take action."

He says Johnson spoke to Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy last night and assured him "we will be introducing sanctions on Russia as we said we always will".

Russia has already sent tanks and troops into Ukraine signalling an invasion, the UK health secretary says.

Sajid Javid told Sky News: "We are waking up to a very dark day in Europe. It's clear fom what we have already seen and found out today that Russia's President Putin has decided to attack the sovereignty of Ukraine and its territorial integrity."

The UK has always said this was "unacceptable", he says.

"We've seen that he's recognised these breakaway eastern regions in Ukraine and we can already tell he's sent in tanks and troops, so I think from that you can conclude that the invasion of Ukraine has begun," he adds.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has already begun so Britain will sanction Russia, UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said.

"You can conclude that the invasion of Ukraine has begun," Javid told Sky News.

Image source, Reuters

A meeting of the UK's emergency Cobra committee is underway in 10 Downing Street.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been joined by senior security officials, including Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, to assess the impact of Russia's decision to recognise separatist regions of Ukraine overnight.

It is expected that a range of sanctions will be discussed, before British MPs are asked to rubber stamp, what a spokesperson for the prime minister called, “a significant package of sanctions” later today.

The sanctions are expected to be the first tranche of punitive measures imposed on Russia, with a further package anticipated if Moscow invades Ukraine.

Ministers are also expected to discuss the domestic implications of the proposed measures, including moves to ensure the resilience of the energy market.

Image source, Reuters

If you're just joining us, here’s a quick wrap-up of what’s taken place in the last few hours:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin has formally recognised two Russian-backed separatist-controlled regions in Ukraine
• He said he would send Russian troops to those regions - Luhansk and Donetsk - raising fears that this could mark the start of a military incursion
• Putin says those troops will be completing “peacekeeping” functions but the US representative at the UN described that as “nonsense”. The US believes Putin is ready to invade.
• The UN Security Council held an urgent late night meeting in New York following Putin's speech, where multiple nations called for peace and diplomacy efforts to avoid a war
• Russia’s ambassador said the country was open to diplomatic solutions but also repeated Putin’s accusations blaming Ukraine for escalating aggressions. Ukraine has strongly denied this

• Analysts say Putin in his fiery speech on Monday laid out the rhetorical groundwork for potential military action
• He claimed, falsely, that Ukraine had no history of being a true nation and the country had been created by Russia
• He also accused Ukraine of being a puppet of the US, and said the Western military alliance Nato was threatening’s Russia’s security
• Ukraine’s President Zelensky, in his own response, said Ukraine was not afraid and would not yield
• The US has flagged it will announce further measures against Russia on Tuesday

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accuses Russia of backing separatist areas "controlled by its own proxies" - by which he means the rebel groups in Ukraine's east.

Australia's embassy staff and officials have been told to leave Ukraine, according to a statement from Foreign Minister Marise Payne.

The country's embassy and operations in the Ukrainian city of Lviv are temporarily closed, the minister said.

Staff have been sent to Romania and eastern Poland to help Australians trying to leave Ukraine.

It comes after the US similarly relocated its diplomats from Lviv to Poland, citing the security situation.

Image source, Getty Images

As news of Russia's move to recognise the rebel-held areas hit the streets of Kyiv, many in the Ukrainian capital were in disbelief. Some stressed they were ready to defend the country if needed.

"I am very shocked," a 22-year-old cook originally from Donetsk, the capital of one of the two rebel areas, told AFP news agency.

Artem Ivaschenko described the recognition decision as the "scariest news" since he had fled the region in 2014.

"I live here, I already lost a part of my homeland, it was taken away, so I will protect it," Artem added.

Maria Levchyshchyna, another Kyiv resident, told the Associated Press: "Why should Russia recognise [the rebel-held areas]? If neighbours come to you and say, ‘This room will be ours,’ would you care about their opinion or not? It’s your flat, and it will be always your flat."

“Let them [Russians] recognise whatever they want. But in my view, it can also provoke a war, because normal people will fight for their country," the 48-year-old painter added.

Russia's ambassador has spoken - the country is a permanent member of the UN Security Council - and argued for the need to defend Russian-backed separatist areas of Ukraine from what he called Ukrainian aggression.

Vasily Nebenzya said that "allowing a new bloodbath in the Donbas is something we do not intend to do".

Ukraine has strongly denied escalating violent tensions.

Last week, the BBC's Orla Guerin spoke to Ukrainian soldiers on the front line in Novotroitske, who said they had orders not to return fire - except in exceptional cases - as Russia is "looking for any excuse to invade".

Image source, Reuters

Russia's ambassador told the security council it remains open to diplomacy, and insisted Ukraine is still bound by the Minsk agreement.

That agreement set out steps designed to end the eight-year conflict in Ukraine's east and resolve the status of the breakaway areas.

Earlier, the US ambassador accused Moscow of tearing it to shreds.

The US believes Russia is trying to produce a pretext to invade Ukraine, potentially on the grounds of protecting ethnic Russians in the country.

China's UN ambassador tells the Security Council meeting on Ukraine that all parties must exercise restraint and avoid any action that could escalate matters.

China welcomes every effort for a diplomatic solution, ambassador Zhang Jun says.

Earlier Reuters quoted a senior US official as saying, "We'll continue to pursue diplomacy until the tanks roll."

Reports from the White House say the US will announce new sanctions against Russia on Tuesday in response to Moscow's "decisions and actions".

"We are coordinating with allies and partners on that announcement,” a spokesperson said.

President Biden was quick off the mark with preliminary sanctions after Russia's move to recognise the rebel regions in Ukraine's east, banning American citizens from "new investment, trade, and financing [...] to, from, or in" the separatist areas.

Luhansk and Donetsk already have few dealings with US citizens, however.

The US ambassador to the UN describes Russia's order to deploy "peacekeepers" in eastern Ukraine as "nonsense" - the same word used earlier by Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

"We know what they really are," she said.

Recognising Luhansk and Donetsk as independent is part of Russia's bid to create a pretext to further invade Ukraine, she said.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield's use of "further" refers to Russia's actions back in 2014, when it seized Crimea from Ukraine and backed a conflict in the eastern Donbas region.

Image source, Reuters

The UN Security Council is holding an emergency meeting in New York to discuss the Ukraine crisis.

US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield has condemned Russia's decision to recognise the two rebel-held territories in eastern Ukraine, warning that the consequences will be dire across Ukraine, Europe and worldwide.

She said the humanitarian toll would expand significantly if Moscow invaded further.

The ambassador said Russian President Vladimir Putin "has torn the Minsk agreement to shreds" and that Washington did not believe "he will stop at that", according to Reuters news agency.

Thomas-Greenfield was referring to the peace agreements in 2014-15 aimed at stopping the fighting and finding a political settlement in eastern Ukraine.

Mariko Oi
Asia Business Correspondent

For many weeks, Asian investors have been on edge as tensions surrounding Ukraine and Russia continue to escalate.

After President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into eastern Ukraine, all the Asian stock markets – from Japan, Australia, South Korea to Hong Kong – have opened sharply lower on Tuesday.

At a time of crisis like this, investors prefer what they consider safe haven assets like the Japanese yen and gold, which have been strengthening.

Meanwhile, oil prices surged as traders are concerned about disruptions to supplies of energy and other commodities.

The US markets were closed for a holiday on Monday, but moves in stock futures point to losses ahead for Wall Street at the Tuesday open.

Image source, Getty Images

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent

Boris Johnson will chair a meeting of the government’s emergency committee on Tuesday morning to agree on what Downing Street called “a significant package of sanctions” against Russia.

This won’t be the moment the West imposes overwhelming economic sanctions. That’s being saved for the invasion of Ukraine that Western leaders believe is imminent.

Instead, more limited restrictions are planned in response to Russia’s decision to recognise the independence of two breakaway regions of Ukraine.

In a call with Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky, Boris Johnson said significant UK sanctions would come into force today against those complicit in the violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity. The Prime Minister also promised the country more defensive support.

President Biden signed an executive order prohibiting American trade and investment in Donetsk and Luhansk.

And the presidents of the European Council and Commission, Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen, condemned what they called Russia’s “illegal act” and promised European sanctions against those involved.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has just confirmed that for security reasons, the remaining US diplomatic staff stationed in Lviv, Ukraine will spend the night in Poland.

The personnel had already been moved from Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, to the western city of Lviv.

Blinken says they will return regularly to continue their work in Ukraine and provide emergency consular services.

The US commitment to Ukraine transcends any one location, its top diplomat says.

Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's foreign minister, says he has spoken again to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ahead of a meeting in Washington.

"Key topic: sanctions. I underscored the need to impose tough sanctions on Russia in response to its illegal actions," he tweets.

President Zelensky made the point in his TV address earlier that Ukraine will be looking for more than just talk.

"It is very important to see now who is our true friend and partner, and who will continue to scare the Russian Federation with words," he said.

One of the biggest sanctions Russia has been threatened with in the event of an invasion of Ukraine is the cancelling of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden said the 1,225km (760-mile) pipeline under the Baltic Sea, which was designed to double Russia's natural gas exports to Germany, would be shut down if Russian troops invade.

"I promise you we will be able to do it," he told reporters, although German Chancellor Olaf Scholtz was more ambiguous at the same news conference.

The pipeline was built to carry enough gas to fuel 26 million homes in Europe, although it has not yet started operating.

It was strongly supported by Russia, which wanted to export more gas, and Germany, which wanted a cheaper and more efficient supply than pipelines through Ukraine and Poland.

But the UK and US were concerned it would make Europe more dependent on Russia for energy supplies, and Ukraine called it a "dangerous political weapon".

Read more about the pipeline's role in the crisis