War has broken out between Russia and Ukraine, Kiev’s foreign minister has declared, as Moscow confirms it has hit Ukrainian military targets moments after the Kremlin issued an order for a “special operation” in the breakaway Donbass region.
In a statement issued early on Thursday morning, Dmitry Kuleba said that Russian President Vladimir Putin "has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine."
"Peaceful Ukrainian cities are under strikes," he added, with claims coming in of explosions near the capital, Kiev. "This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend itself and will win," he insisted. "The world can and must stop Putin. The time to act is now."
His comments come after Putin signed a decree authorizing the use of military force following a request for support from the leaders of the separatist Donetsk and Lugansk regions. “Circumstances require us to take decisive and immediate action," the order reads. In a televised address to the nation, the Russian President said that that he wanted to "demilitarize" and "de-Nazify"Ukraine.
A number of Ukrainian military installations are believed to have been targeted by missile strikes, and there have been reports of large-scale Russian troop movements. The country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has reportedly convened the National Security and Defense Council and Ukrainian airspace has been closed. "We are strong, we will win," he said in a video statement.
Blasts have been reported in cities close to the Donbass contact line, including Mariupol, a major port city in Donetsk region, as well as further afield. A CNN crew in Kiev has reported hearing explosions, while others have been reported in Odessa and Kharkov.Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Russia had "no plans to occupy the Ukrainian territories" after announcing that a special operation was launched to defend the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics from “Ukrainian aggression.”
The operation’s ultimate goal is “to protect the people who have been subjected for 8 years to genocide by the Kiev regime,” Putin said in an adress on Thursday morning, adding that Moscow would “embark on a demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine, and handing over to justice those who committed numerous atrocities against civilians.”
The Russian president noted, however, that Moscow harbors no far-reaching plans to take over the whole territory of Ukraine.
“We do not have plans to occupy Ukrainian territories. We are not going to impose anything on anyone by force,” he said.
Ukraine has been accusing Russia of illegally occupying Crimea, which was reabsorbed by Russia following a referendum in March 2015, following the US-backed coup that overthrew the elected government in Kiev.
Kiev has also repeatedly accused Russia of having a military presence in Donbass, although Moscow consistently denied this claim.
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