When Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine on February 24, he cited the Russian Federation's "obligations" as an ally of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk "People's Republics." As it turns out, no such alliance existed at that time. The agreements regarding mutual cooperation did not come into force until a day later, on February 25. In other words, according to both international and Russian law, Moscow couldn't possibly have had any legal basis for invading Ukraine.