Members of Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer military units of the Armed Forces train, in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (AP/file)Russia Ukraine Crisis Live: Russia’s Vladimir Putin announced a ‘military operation’ in Ukraine, reported AFP. Satellite imagery taken Wednesday showed new deployments in western Russia, many of them within 16 km of the border with Ukraine and less than 80 km from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Maxar Technologies said. Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he believes Russia will invade Ukraine within hours after separatists Wednesday asked for Russian help to repel “aggression” and as explosions rocked the breakaway eastern city of Donetsk.
Earlier Wednesday, Ukrainian lawmakers approved a decree that imposes a nationwide state of emergency for 30 days starting Thursday. The Ukrainian government also closed airports in eastern Ukraine from midnight through 7 am because of the confrontation with Russia.
Shelling has intensified in the east, where Russian President Vladimir Putin has recognised two separatist regions as independent and ordered the deployment of what he called peacekeepers, a move the West calls the start of an invasion.
A Ukrainian soldier in Krymske, which was shelled by separatists. (NYT)
Russia begins ‘military operation’ in Ukraine, says news agency AFP.
The Associated Press reported that President Vladimir Putin said Russia will conduct a military operation in eastern Ukraine. Putin warned that any foreign attempt to interfere with Russian action would lead to 'consequences they have never seen'.
It has been a packed 24 hours so far as Russia-Ukraine tensions have heightened to their peak. Here's a look at the key updates from Kyiv and Moscow.
➡️ Russia is claiming that rebels in eastern Ukraine have asked Kremlin for military assistance to help fend off Ukrainian "aggression," an announcement that immediately fueled fears that Moscow was offering up a pretext for war, just as the West had warned
➡️ Ukraine has restricted civilian aircrafts in its airspace due to potential hazards and declared an emergency in the country for 30 days
➡️ The US has repeated its warning that Russian President Vladimir Putin will face "significant consequences" if Moscow invades Ukraine. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he believes Russia will invade Ukraine within hours, and that "everything seems to be in place for Russia to engage in a major aggression against Ukraine."
➡️ Ukraine's parliament and other government and banking websites were hit with another wave of distributed-denial-of-service attacks Wednesday, and cybersecurity researchers said unidentified attackers had also infected hundreds of computers with destructive malware
➡️ Satellite imagery taken Wednesday showed new deployments in western Russia, many of them within 16 km of the border with Ukraine and less than 80 km from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv
Speaking in Russian, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave an emotional address early Thursday.
"The people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine want peace," he said. "But if we come under attack, if we face an attempt to take away our country, our freedom, our lives and lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. When you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs."
Zelenskyy said he asked for a call with Putin late Wednesday but the Kremlin didn't respond. Earlier Wednesday, Ukraine imposed a nationwide state of emergency, which allows authorities to impose restrictions on movement, block rallies and ban political parties and organizations. (AP)
Satellite imagery taken Wednesday showed new deployments in western Russia, many of them within 16 kilometers of the border with Ukraine and less than 80 km from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Maxar Technologies said.
The images showed field deployment, military convoys, artillery and armoured personnel carriers with support equipment and troops. Most of the troops and equipment were positioned in smaller unit-sized formations on farm land and along tree lines, Maxar said Wednesday. (Reuters)
The Kremlin said rebels in eastern Ukraine asked Russia for military assistance Wednesday to help fend off Ukrainian "aggression," an announcement that immediately fuelled fears that Moscow was offering up a pretext for war, just as the West had warned.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the rebel chiefs wrote to Putin Wednesday, pleading with him to intervene after Ukrainian shelling caused civilian deaths and crippled vital infrastructure.
Earlier in the day, Ukrainian lawmakers approved a decree that imposes a nationwide state of emergency for 30 days starting Thursday. (AP)
The Ukrainian government is closing airports in eastern Ukraine from midnight through 7 am because of the confrontation with Russia.
Ukrainian aviation authorities also have declared some airspace in the east to be "danger areas" because of attempts by Russian aviation authorities to seize control of the airspace.
Ukraine acted after Russia issued a ban on civilian air traffic in airspace over eastern Ukraine. (AP)
Russia has partially closed airspace in the Rostov flight information region to the east of its border with Ukraine "in order to provide safety" for civil aviation flights, according to its notice to airmen.
The notice listed specific route segments and altitudes to be avoided. (Reuters)
Airlines should stop flying over any part of Ukraine because of the risk of an unintended shootdown or a cyber attack targeting air traffic control amid tensions with Russia, a conflict zone monitor said Wednesday.
Safe Airspace, which was set up to provide safety and conflict zone information for airlines after Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014, said it had increased its risk level to "do not fly".
"Regardless of the actual movements of Russian forces into Ukraine, the level of tension and uncertainty in Ukraine is now extreme," Safe Airspace said on its website. "This itself gives rise to significant risk to civil aviation." (Reuters)
The United Nations Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting Wednesday night at the request of Ukraine, which said it feared an immediate threat of a Russian invasion.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba asked for the meeting in a letter to Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, who holds the council presidency in February. The meeting is scheduled for 9.30 pm EST (Indian time 8 am on Thursday). (AP)