Vladimir Putin Invades Ukraine | HuffPost Latest News

Russian forces invaded Ukraine overnight on President Vladimir Putins orders and attacked targets across the country, with Ukraines military responding.

As of Thursday evening Eastern time, 137 Ukrainians (both civilian and military) had been killed and an additional 316 wounded , according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The incursion was first announced from the air, with sirens heard in the capital, Kyiv. Ukraine later released footage of Russian military vehicles entering the territory and said the Russians had successfully captured Chernobyl, the extremely sensitive site of a deadly nuclear disaster in 1986.

Zelenskyy said the country was severing all diplomatic ties with Russia. He also vowed to give weapons to anyone who wants to defend Ukraine, and urged people to donate blood to help the effort.

We will give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country. Be ready to support Ukraine in the squares of our cities.

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We will give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country. Be ready to support Ukraine in the squares of our cities.
(@ZelenskyyUa) February 24, 2022

Putin announced the invasion in a speech broadcast Thursday morning local time.

Putin had previously said that eastern regions of Ukraine controlled by Russian-backed separatists should be treated as independent and approved a military deployment into the country in what U.S. officials called an invasion.

President Joe Biden said in a statement that Moscow had launched an unprovoked and unjustified attack. Biden added late Wednesday that he would soon make an address on the situation and unveil new U.S. punishments for Putin on top of the financial sanctions he had announced in coordination with American allies earlier in the week.

President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering. Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring... the world will hold Russia accountable, Biden said. Tonight, Jill and I are praying for the brave and proud people of Ukraine.

RUSSIA ATTACKS UKRAINE: Explosions have been heard in Ukraines capital as the Russian attack begins. Officials have labeled the operation a full-scale invasion, forcing Ukraines president to declare martial law. ABCs Faith Abubey reports. pic.twitter.com/RzyghKjUMa

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RUSSIA ATTACKS UKRAINE: Explosions have been heard in Ukraines capital as the Russian attack begins. Officials have labeled the operation a full-scale invasion, forcing Ukraines president to declare martial law. ABCs Faith Abubey reports. pic.twitter.com/RzyghKjUMa
ABC World News Now (@abcWNN) February 24, 2022

Russias Defense Ministry claimed it had targeted Ukraines airbases and rendered them and other military infrastructure inoperable, saying the countrys air defense systems had been suppressed. Ukrainian officials also said Belarus, a close ally of Putin, had deployed its own military as part of the assault on border checkpoints.

Some U.S. officials have called for Belarus to be part of any sanctions package that will be announced by the White House later Thursday.

Many Ukrainians began to flee major city centers after the incursion began. Major backlogs at gas stations filled streets with cars waiting to buy fuel. Others took refuge in the citys subway tunnels as air sirens sounded across the city.