As many speculate that the war was declared on Wednesday night and is heading for Thursday, Kiev residents appear to be gassed and trying to leave the city by car and rail this morning just hours after the Russian president Vladimir Putin crossed the Belarusian border with tanks.
The reality of the war has finally dawned on many Ukrainians, who have denied that Putin will actually invade. Many are now rushing to the western border to flee the incoming tanks after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared martial law.
Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital and other major cities following Vladimir Putin’s announcement that a military operation had begun.
Photos and video show Ukrainians leaving Kiev on Thursday morning as air raid sirens blew through the capital.
Many either headed for the exits or lined up in long lines for gas, with some stopping at ATMs in advance.
Intense queues were also observed at a Kiev metro station with people trying to board trains to escape the city. Some just went to the station to find refuge.
The Russian president announced the action during a televised address early Thursday morning, saying the move was in response to threats from Ukraine.
He added that Russia had no intention of occupying Ukraine. Putin says the Ukrainian regime is responsible for the bloodshed.
Putin also warned other countries that any attempt to interfere in Russia’s actions would lead to “consequences they have never seen.”
Residents of Kiev are leaving the city after pre-emptive missile strikes by the Russian armed forces
Explosions were heard and seen in several cities in Ukraine early in the morning
Residents were spotted traveling to work, even when air raids sounded
People queue in front of ATM in Mariupol after Russian President Vladimir Putin authorizes military operation in eastern Ukraine
A man named Alexander (right) reassures his son while the family takes refuge in a metro station in Kiev
Some cars have been spotted driving to the city’s exits after Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized a military operation in eastern Ukraine.
People line up for fuel at a gas station in Severodonetsk, Luhansk region
Residents of the capital are leaving the city
Cars stand in a long queue near a gas station while waiting to refuel
People, some with bags and suitcases, walk to the metro station in Kiev early on February 24
Before Thursday, there were some provocative attitudes from the people of Ukraine about whether the Russians would really go through the invasion.
Ukrainians opposed pressure from Moscow only last week with a national show of unity on Wednesday, although the West warned it saw no signs of a promised withdrawal of Russian troops from the country’s borders.
President Vladimir Zelensky, who announced that “Unity Day” coincides with the hearing date of Putin’s invasion, addressed the nation after the attack failed, telling his compatriots that “we can only protect our home if we stay.” united “.
“We are united by the desire to live happily in peace,” he added, before flying by helicopter to a training ground in western Ukraine, where tank and aircraft combat exercises are being held.
Across the country, people of all ages waved flags in the streets and windows of apartments to greet with two fingers at Putin’s threat to attack with about 150,000 troops gathered at the border.
Hundreds unfurled a 650-foot flag at Kiev’s Olympic Stadium, and another was draped in a shopping mall in the capital. In the government-controlled part of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, where the war with Russian-backed separatists has been raging since 2014, residents have hoisted another huge flag across the street.
Hundreds of Ukrainians unfurl 650-foot flag at Kiev Olympic Stadium as part of Unity Day celebrations a week ago
Vladimir Zelensky called for the celebrations to coincide with the rumor of a Russian attack, saying Ukrainians are united by a desire to live in peace
Ukrainians wave flags in Maidan Square, where the revolution that toppled the country’s last pro-Russian government was brought down, leading it to closer ties with the West
The Ukrainian Premier League, the highest national football competition, was originally due to resume after a two-month winter break on Friday.
The Premier League takes a winter break every season and the clubs have not played since December 12. They mostly warm up and train in Turkey, which is on the other side of the Black Sea.
They have to return to play on Friday, February 25, when the second club at the bottom, Minai, hosts fourth-ranked Zorya Luhansk.
Ukraine’s Border Protection Agency said on Thursday morning that the Russian military had attacked the country from neighboring Belarus.
The agency said Russian troops had launched artillery shelling as part of a Belarusian-backed attack. They said Ukrainian border guards were retaliating, adding that there were no immediate reports of casualties.
Russian troops have stationed with their ally Belarus for military exercises, a move the West saw as a prelude to an invasion of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian capital Kiev is about 50 miles south of the border with Belarus.
The president of Ukraine declared martial law and urged citizens not to panic as Russia launched military strikes on the country, while the country’s foreign minister called it a “full-scale invasion”.
The Russian president announced the action during a televised address early Thursday morning, saying the move was in response to threats from Ukraine.
Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital Kiev, as well as in Odessa and Kharkiv after Vladimir Putin announced that the military operation had begun.
The sound of distant explosions was caught in a live broadcast from the American channel CNN, which made reporter Matthew Chance wear a bulletproof vest.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Russia had launched a “full-scale invasion of Ukraine.”
Mr Kuleba said Ukraine would defend itself against Russian aggression “and win”.
Ukraine has declared martial law
He said: “Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Peaceful Ukrainian cities are on strike.
“This is an aggressive war. Ukraine will defend itself and win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time for action is now.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s ambassador to the UN told the Security Council that Russian President Vladimir Putin had “declared war on Ukraine.”
He also pressured his Russian counterpart to say Russia would not shell or bomb Ukrainian cities.
Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Peaceful Ukrainian cities are on strike. This is an aggressive war. Ukraine will defend itself and win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time for action is now.
– Dmitry Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) February 24, 2022
Ukrainian Ambassador Sergei Kislitsya said that if Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia fails to respond in the affirmative, he should step down as chairman of Russia’s Security Council this month.
The Ukrainian then called for a new emergency meeting of the Security Council, calling on the UN body to “stop the war because it is too late to talk about de-escalation.”
Kislitsa then asked if he should release a video of Putin announcing military operations in Ukraine.
Nebenzia replied: “This is not called war. This is called a special military operation in Donbass.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said Russia’s attack on Ukraine is the “saddest moment” of his five-year term.
Mr Guterres called on the Russian president to withdraw his troops and added: “In the name of humanity, do not allow Europe to start the worst war of the century, with consequences not only devastating for Ukraine, not only tragic for the Russian Federation, but with an impact we cannot even foresee in terms of the consequences for the world economy. “
“What is clear to me is that this war makes no sense,” Mr Guterres added, stressing that it violated the UN Charter and would cause a level of suffering that Europe had not known at least since the crisis. The Balkans in the 1990s.
Asian stock markets fell and oil prices rose after Putin declared Russian military action in Ukraine.
Markets in Tokyo and Seoul fell 2%, while Hong Kong and Sydney lost more than 3% on Thursday. Oil prices jumped by nearly $ 3 (2.22 British pounds) per barrel due to concerns about a possible disruption of Russian supplies.
Earlier, Wall Street’s S and P 500 fell 1.8 percent to an eight-month low after the Kremlin said rebels in eastern Ukraine had called for military aid.