The Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin asked the Defense Ministry to agree with Donetsk and Luhansk on what would allow Russia to enter to ensure peace in them, while Russian media reported that two military convoys headed to the two regions, after Moscow recognized them as separate republics from Ukraine.
Reuters reported that Putin ordered the Defense Ministry to send Russian peacekeepers to Donetsk and Lugansk in eastern Ukraine, according to a decree published early Tuesday.
Al-Jazeera correspondent said that the Russian agreement with Donetsk and Luhansk is for a period of 10 years, subject to automatic extension.
Al-Jazeera correspondent quoted Russian media as saying that two Russian military convoys crossed towards Donetsk and Lugansk, eastern Ukraine.
The Kremlin also revealed that Putin also asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to start consultations with the "Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk" to establish diplomatic relations.
Al-Jazeera correspondent in Moscow stated that Russia said that it pledges to guarantee the work of financial and banking institutions in accordance with its agreement with Donetsk and Lugansk, adding that financial transactions will be in Russian rubles in accordance with the Russian agreement with them.
On Monday evening, Putin announced his country's recognition of the independence of the separatist regions of Ukraine, Donetsk and Luhansk, and signed two decrees recognizing Russia's two republics, asking the Russian parliament to immediately recognize this decision.
On the other hand, the European Union's High Commissioner for Foreign and Security Policy Josep Borrell said that Putin's dispatch of peacekeeping forces to Donetsk and Luhansk is an outright aggression against Ukraine and a violation of its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Borrell said that the UN Security Council should meet as soon as possible to face the repercussions of the latest developments in Ukraine.
The New York Times revealed that Russian soldiers without insignia and military ranks, and dozens of military vehicles, are located 60 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
The British newspaper, The Guardian, quoted a senior European official as saying that Putin wants the whole of Ukraine, and the recognition may be just the starting point for a larger escalation.
Axios also said that Putin's recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk is likely the first step of a large-scale military operation.