At 9 pm EST (4 am Kyiv time), Russia began its invasion of Ukraine with an alleged air-superiority attack using Russian Strategic Bombers. Likely targets of the first wave will have been defensive structures and troop positionings using cruise missiles along the line of control.
This was followed by an address by Putin, claiming the commencement of military activities against a “Nazi Ukraine”, warning NATO that it had crossed a line.
Shortly afterward, reports of attacks in the city of Kramatorsk, a city of 150,000 people, came to light. Attacks are potentially from the same bombers detected an hour earlier or from artillery stationed in the LNR and DNR. And soon after, attacks were reported in Kyiv, Odesa, Mariupol, Kakhovka, Svatove, Bakhmut, Boryspil, Dnipro, and Kharkiv.
Earlier, the United States Secretary of State Anthony J. Blinken shared his belief that a Russian attack on Ukraine would begin overnight. And so it has, with a massive aerial and artillery bombardment on military and civilian targets in Ukraine.
Earlier, Putin and Lukashenka shared a phone call, on the imminent deployment of troops in Belarus’ southern border. Said troops have begun to overrun northern Ukraine, surrounding troops involved in stemming the main Russian advance, while terrorizing Kyiv. Belarusian troops are allegedly a part of this offensive.
NATO members are now meeting regarding the full-scale escalation, as nations around the world condemn Russia’s brazen and horrific crimes against humanity.
Though earlier reports stated that the Ukrainian MoD had confirmed Russian landings in Odesa, these claims were later denied. It is unclear whether Ukraine’s MoD was hacked, but Odesa has not yet fallen. Russian troops continue to move towards Kharkiv. Gunfire within Kyiv’s airport in nearby Boryspil, though the source of the fighting is unclear.
With Ukraine now under martial law, it is possible that the beginnings of a Ukrainian defensive may soon begin, as well as the immediate response of Western allies through sanctions and indirect military assistance.
World Affairs International 