War in Europe: Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine this morning (Thursday) as part of a “special military operation” in the Donabas region of eastern Ukraine and launched a general attack on the country from three fronts – the border with Russia, Belarus and the Crimea. Putin claimed this morning that he did not plan to occupy Ukraine, but to “overthrow” it. In addition, the president warned that any attempt to intervene in Russian action on the part of the countries of the world would lead to “unseen consequences”.
Russia invades Ukraine: all the details of the dramatic morning in Eastern Europe
From this morning there was an exchange of fire between the two sides, when the Russian army sent tanks into Ukraine and attacked with missiles facilities and military infrastructure as well as the major cities in the country, including the capital Kiev. Dozens of soldiers and civilians have been killed in the fighting so far.
Ukraine, for its part, responded with fire to the attacking forces and reported the downing of aircraft and damage to Russian naval ships. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zlansky accused the Russian ruler: “Putin wants to destroy our country,” and called on anyone who can take up arms to join the fighting.
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Watch what is happening live in Kiev:
In the West, Putin has been strongly condemned and is expected to tighten sanctions on Moscow and its president and senior government officials personally during the day. US President Joe Biden said this morning that his country and its allies would respond to the move in a “uniform and decisive” manner. “Russia has chosen a catastrophic loss of life and suffering for human beings, blaming it for the ‘death and destruction’ that will follow.” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the invasion as a “catastrophe for Europe.”
ongoing updates:
16:44 Adviser to the Minister of the Interior of Ukraine: “Russian military forces have entered the Chernobyl region through the border with Belarus.”
16:34CNN reported that Russian military forces had taken control of Antonov Airport, located about 40 km from central Kiev.
16:15: The Prime Minister of Denmark said that his country is ready to receive refugees from Ukraine.
Video shows aftermath of bombed residential blocks in Chuhuiv, near Kharkiv, Ukraine. https://t.co/hE8ymcwk7q pic.twitter.com/gkRG3hdX7s
— ABC News (@ABC) February 24, 2022
16:05: Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anthony Blinken told Russian officials before the invasion that he did not intend to coordinate security between the United States and Russia.
15:40: The German economy minister said his country has oil reserves for 90 days, but there is no way to avoid harming the German economy following the invasion.
15:25: The Russian Defense Ministry said that as of this morning, 74 Ukrainian military targets had been attacked on the ground.
15:15: According to a Reuters report, UEFA has decided to copy the 2022 Champions League final from St. Petersburg.
15:10: According to Ukrainian police, Russia has attacked 203 targets in the country since the beginning of the day.
15:00: The Czech Republic has returned its ambassador to Moscow.
Heavy smoke near the intelligence headquarters of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense (Photo: REUTERS / Valentyn Ogirenko)
Ukrainian citizens flee the country via the border with Poland (Photo: REUTERS / Kacper Pempel)
Ukrainian policemen stand near the remains of a Russian missile that fell in Kiev (Photo: REUTERS / Valentyn Ogirenko)
The streets of Kiev emptied (Photo: REUTERS / Umit Bektas)