Global media were expecting Russian President Vladimir Putin to address the nation on the conflict in Ukraine, however, an RT reporter sent a few hours later the message that we shouldn’t expect anything – not tonight at least. “Go to sleep,” Margarita Simonyan wrote on Telegram, as quoted by Max Sendon of the Financial Times.

Putin will address the Russian people, according to Kremlin-based political analyst Sergei Markov on Wednesday.

“Go to sleep,” RT editor Margarita Simonyan writes. Seems like we may not be getting a Putin speech today https://t.co/xiOU6vBOeP — max seddon (@maxseddon) September 20, 2022

Earlier it was reported that the speech would be broadcast at 20:00 (Moscow and Greece time), while it would probably be accompanied by a televised intervention by the Minister of Defence, Sergei Shoigu. As of 10:30 p.m., the Russian president had not yet appeared on television, while the Russian news network RT deleted its related post.

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The Russian President, Vladimir Putin is scheduled to give a rare address to the nation on Tuesday. According to sources, he is expected to announce the annexation of the Donbas region in a similar fashion to Crimea in 2014 after referenda set to take place at the end of September in Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kherson.

The development marks a turning point in the conflict, as it would free the Russian state to deploy more weapons to defend its “new territory”.

The Russian Parliament today approved heavy penalties for a range of crimes, including desertion, damage to military property, and insubordination if committed during military conscription or hostilities.

Ahead of the announcement of the dates, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had warned today that in the event of an attack on the annexed territories, Moscow would use “all the forces of legitimate defence”. The president of the Russian Lower House declared that he would support the integration of the regions into Russia.

The last time the Russian leader gave a live address was on 24 February, when Russia invaded Ukraine.

NATO believes Russia is getting ready to escalate military actions in Ukraine, while the US said it would not recognize the results of the scheduled referenda in the regions.