John Haltiwanger and Charles R. Davis
1 hour ago
T-72B3 Main Battle Tanks of Russian Army take part in a military drill in St. Petersburg, Russia on February 14, 2022. Russian Defense Ministry/Getty Images
Russian forces attacked Ukraine early Thursday morning, launching an offensive that threatens to kill thousands of people, force millions more to flee, and destabilize much of Europe, with the consequences certain to reverberate across the world.
Blasts were heard from Kyiv, the capital, to the eastern city of Kharkiv — missile strikes, the Ukrainian interior ministry told CNN — with reports of outgoing artillery fire from Russian forces across the border.
"The prayers of the entire world are with the people of Ukraine tonight as they suffer an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces," US President Joe Biden said in a statement. "President Putin has chosen a pre mediated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering."
Thursday's invasion was preceded by a formal request for military intervention from Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, where rebels and Russian forces have been fighting Ukrainian troops for eight years.
On the eve of the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to the airwaves in a last-ditch appeal for peace — while pledging that Ukrainians would "fight back" against any futher Russian incursion.
Hours later, in an early morning address that coincided with an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, Russian President Vladimir Putin effectively declared war, insisting that Russian forces would strive for the "demilitarization" and "de-Nazification" of Ukraine, whose president is Jewish. Explosions were heard soon after in Kharkiv and Kyiv, CNN reported, with blasts also heard in the port city of Odessa.
The attack will be a "full scale" and "comprehensive military assault," Sen. Marco Rubio, vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, wrote on Twitter. The Florida Republican said the invasion would include air strikes as well as amphibious landings, cyber attacks, and "a large ground force to occupy a large swath of territory."
Indeed, minutes later Reuters reported that an amphibious landing operation was taking place near Odessa on the Azov sea.
Tensions had been mounting for months as Russia amassed troops, tanks, and amphibious ships near Ukraine's borders. Beginning in late 2021, Russia began amassing tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine's borders, with roughly 190,000 deployed by the time of the attack.
Russia in mid-February claimed to be withdrawing some of its troops from Ukraine's borders, but the US and NATO didn't buy it, citing intelligence that the Kremlin had actually deployed thousands more soldiers.
President Biden warned last week that he believes Russian forces will ultimately besiege Ukraine's capitol, which has a population of nearly 3 million people. Earlier this week, he unveiled a new round of sanctions against Russian officials in response to Moscow deploying troops to the eastern Donbas region, which he characterized "the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine."
Over the past few months the US and its allies worked to find a diplomatic solution to prevent a broader confrontation, but Russia made demands for binding security guarantees to which they would never agree. This included permanently banning Ukraine and Georgia from NATO, which the alliance and Washington repeatedly made clear was a non-starter.
Ukraine has sought to join NATO for years, and maintains robust ties with the alliance. The US since 2014 has provided Ukraine with billions in military assistance, including lethal aid like Javelin anti-tank missiles. Other NATO members have also provided Ukraine with weapons. That said, Ukraine is not on track to become a NATO member at any point in the near future, despite suggestions from the Kremlin to the contrary.
For years, Putin offered hints of his ambitions when it comes to Ukraine. Putin in 2008 told President George W. Bush that Ukraine is "not even a country," and he's referred to Ukrainians and Russians as "one people." In short, Putin has been quite clear that he wants Ukraine under Russian sway, and the US out of the region he perceives as in Russia's sphere of influence.
Putin, a former KGB operative, during his 20 years in power has moved to reestablish Moscow's hegemony in countries once part of the Soviet Union. The military operation he just ordered in Ukraine shows he's committed to this course despite the risks it will damage his economy or provoke a more robust NATO presence.
- Russia attacked Ukraine early Thursday morning, with explosions heard in the capital, Kyiv.
- The US and its allies warned Russia of severe economic sanctions if it invaded.
- Russia previously invaded Ukraine in 2014, annexing Crimea in the process and fueling the 8-year war in the country's east.
Russian forces attacked Ukraine early Thursday morning, launching an offensive that threatens to kill thousands of people, force millions more to flee, and destabilize much of Europe, with the consequences certain to reverberate across the world.
Blasts were heard from Kyiv, the capital, to the eastern city of Kharkiv — missile strikes, the Ukrainian interior ministry told CNN — with reports of outgoing artillery fire from Russian forces across the border.
"The prayers of the entire world are with the people of Ukraine tonight as they suffer an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces," US President Joe Biden said in a statement. "President Putin has chosen a pre mediated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering."
Thursday's invasion was preceded by a formal request for military intervention from Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, where rebels and Russian forces have been fighting Ukrainian troops for eight years.
On the eve of the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to the airwaves in a last-ditch appeal for peace — while pledging that Ukrainians would "fight back" against any futher Russian incursion.
Hours later, in an early morning address that coincided with an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, Russian President Vladimir Putin effectively declared war, insisting that Russian forces would strive for the "demilitarization" and "de-Nazification" of Ukraine, whose president is Jewish. Explosions were heard soon after in Kharkiv and Kyiv, CNN reported, with blasts also heard in the port city of Odessa.
The attack will be a "full scale" and "comprehensive military assault," Sen. Marco Rubio, vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, wrote on Twitter. The Florida Republican said the invasion would include air strikes as well as amphibious landings, cyber attacks, and "a large ground force to occupy a large swath of territory."
Indeed, minutes later Reuters reported that an amphibious landing operation was taking place near Odessa on the Azov sea.
Tensions had been mounting for months as Russia amassed troops, tanks, and amphibious ships near Ukraine's borders. Beginning in late 2021, Russia began amassing tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine's borders, with roughly 190,000 deployed by the time of the attack.
Russia in mid-February claimed to be withdrawing some of its troops from Ukraine's borders, but the US and NATO didn't buy it, citing intelligence that the Kremlin had actually deployed thousands more soldiers.
President Biden warned last week that he believes Russian forces will ultimately besiege Ukraine's capitol, which has a population of nearly 3 million people. Earlier this week, he unveiled a new round of sanctions against Russian officials in response to Moscow deploying troops to the eastern Donbas region, which he characterized "the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine."
Over the past few months the US and its allies worked to find a diplomatic solution to prevent a broader confrontation, but Russia made demands for binding security guarantees to which they would never agree. This included permanently banning Ukraine and Georgia from NATO, which the alliance and Washington repeatedly made clear was a non-starter.
Ukraine has sought to join NATO for years, and maintains robust ties with the alliance. The US since 2014 has provided Ukraine with billions in military assistance, including lethal aid like Javelin anti-tank missiles. Other NATO members have also provided Ukraine with weapons. That said, Ukraine is not on track to become a NATO member at any point in the near future, despite suggestions from the Kremlin to the contrary.
For years, Putin offered hints of his ambitions when it comes to Ukraine. Putin in 2008 told President George W. Bush that Ukraine is "not even a country," and he's referred to Ukrainians and Russians as "one people." In short, Putin has been quite clear that he wants Ukraine under Russian sway, and the US out of the region he perceives as in Russia's sphere of influence.
Putin, a former KGB operative, during his 20 years in power has moved to reestablish Moscow's hegemony in countries once part of the Soviet Union. The military operation he just ordered in Ukraine shows he's committed to this course despite the risks it will damage his economy or provoke a more robust NATO presence.
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