The United Nations Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting for Wednesday night at the request of Ukraine, which said it feared an immediate threat of a Russian invasion.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba asked for the meeting in a letter to Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, who holds the council presidency in February. The meeting is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. EST.
The meeting comes two days after the 15-member council held an emergency open meeting, also at Ukraine's request, which saw no support for Russian President Vladimir Putin's declaration of independence for two separatist areas in Ukraine's east and his announcement that Russian troops would head there to keep the peace.
Council diplomats are finalising a draft resolution that they said would make clear that Russia is violating the UN Charter, international law, and a 2015 council resolution endorsing the Minsk agreements aimed at restoring peace in eastern Ukraine.