Explainer: What to know about Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions

The Donbass region in eastern Ukraine has been a breaking point in the escalating crisis between Russia and Ukraine.

But tensions between the two grew further when Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday recognising the two breakaway regions - the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic. 

The decree signals an end to the seven-year peace deal known as the Minsk agreement, prompting a chorus of condemnation from Western leaders.

Putin also ordered his defence ministry to dispatch Russian forces on “peacekeeping duties”, defying Western warnings that such a step would halt long-running peace negotiations.

Here is a closer look at the territories and why they are at the centre of attention:

What is the history behind so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics?

The territories - collectively known as the Donbass - are run by separatist governments that seized control of the regions after overthrowing Ukraine’s pro-Kremlin president in 2014.

Russia also responded to the fall of the government by annexing Crimea. 

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Since then, more than 14,000 people have been killed in fighting in the Donbass region between separatists and Ukrainian forces.

The West and Ukraine accuse Russia of backing the separatists financially and militarily, a charge Moscow denies. 

Russia has also granted passports to hundreds of thousands of people there. 

Most of the 3.6 million people living in the territories speak Russian as a result of the migration of Russian workers after World War II in the Soviet era.

The region is divided into two separate territories under different controls: The Kiev-controlled parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts and the Moscow-backed so-called Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics. Separatists control about one-third of the region along the border with Russia.

What is the Minsk agreement?

A Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine on July 17 2014, killing all 298 people aboard amid intense fighting involving tanks, heavy artillery and warplanes. 

An international probe said that the passenger plane was downed by a Russia-supplied missile from the separatist-controlled territory in Ukraine. Moscow denied any involvement.

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After a defeat of Ukrainian troops in August 2014, envoys from Kiev the rebels and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) signed a truce in the Belarus capital of Minsk in September same year.

The document envisaged a cease-fire observed by OSCE, exchange of prisoners, removal of all foreign fighters, an amnesty for the rebels and a promise that the two regions would have a degree of self-rule.

However, the deal collapsed in 2015 and fighting resumed, leading to another defeat for the Ukrainian forces at Debaltseve. 

Another deal was brokered by France and Germany and was signed by Ukraine, Russia and the rebels in Minsk in February 2015.

Under the agreement, in return for Ukraine regaining control of its border with Russia, the two regions would be given a special status and significant autonomy.

The Minsk document helped end full-scale fighting, but the situation has remained tense and regular skirmishes have continued.

Where does the conflict stand now?

Putin’s recognition of the rebel-held territories shatters the Minsk peace deal. 

Ukraine and the West accuse Moscow of inciting tensions to pave the way for invasion. On the other hand, Russia accuses Ukraine of trying to take over the rebel-held territories by force.

The separatist leaders released a video on Monday urging Putin to recognise the regions’ independence. The Russian leader convened a meeting of his Security Council and then signed the recognition decrees.