Russia is facing the prospect of another raft of sanctions on prominent individuals and sectors of the economy after it oversaw a series of sham referendums in four Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine, and is expected to annex those regions imminently.
Condemned by Ukraine and its Western allies, the votes showed a resounding majority voted to join Russia, although the elections were widely seen as rigged and many irregular voting practices were reported.
The EU proposed an eighth package of sanctions on Russia yesterday in response to the referendums, and the U.S. said it will announce more sanctions "in the coming days." The U.K. has already announced 92 new sanctions as a result of the sham votes.
It's widely expected that Russian President Vladimir Putin will announce Friday that the occupied regions are being annexed and becoming a part of the Russian Federation. There are widespread fears that Moscow could resort to using nuclear weapons to "defend" what it will then claim is its territory.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned Russian conscripts sent to fight in Ukraine that they should surrender if they want to survive.
"If you want to live, run. If you want to live, surrender. If you want to live, fight on your streets for your freedom. Everything was taken from you anyway," he said on Telegram, addressing the soldiers in Russian.
The flow of Russian men of fighting age looking to leave the country persisted amid fears the government would soon close its borders to stop those trying to evade President Vladimir Putin's draft.
The exit of military-age men began shortly after Putin ordered the mobilization of more troops last Wednesday to regain the upper hand in Ukraine.
But confusion over who will be called up and when has led to mass protests across the country, violence at draft offices, sold-out flights and chaotic scenes at border crossings.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said no decisions had been made on whether to seal the borders and introduce martial law, Tass reported.