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       Watch live view from Kiev’s Maidan Square as explosions heard across Ukraine

       Dozens of people have died after Russia began attacking Ukraine with airstrikes in a “full-scale invasion”.

       CCTV cameras caught Russian military vehicles rolling through border force checkpoints as ground troops crossed the Crimea border into Ukraine early on Thursday.

       Ukraine said at least 40 of its soldiers had died after being bombarded with more than 30 strikes on civilian and military infrastructure by 11am GMT.

       The country’s national police force said Russia had already carried out 203 attacks by the afternoon, with fighting going on almost everywhere throughout Ukraine‘s territory.

       Border force guards were among the dead, as was a boy killed after shelling struck an apartment building in the eastern region of Kharkiv.

       Explosions were heard on the outskirts of the cities of Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Mariupol, as well as the capital Kiev, shortly after Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” in the east of the country on Thursday morning.

       Inside the country, long queues of cars could be seen snaking along motorways as people attempted to flee after Ukraine and neighbouring countries closed their airspace to commercial flights.

       Recommended The conflict between Russia and Ukraine explained Has Ukraine joined Nato? Why Putin is against the country’s membership Ukraine crisis: What are the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics? Ukraine invasion: Explosions ring out across country as Putin declares war to ‘de-Nazify’ neighbour

       Key Points Explosions and gunfire heard near Kiev as Russian invasion of Ukraine begins Ukraine says Putin has launched a 'full-scale invasion’ Five Russian planes shot down in Luhansk, Ukraine says NATO to hold emergency meeting Kiev streets fill up with people fleeing as siren goes off in capital Ukraine president Zelensky urges citizens to fight and offers weapons Ukrainian forces fighting to prevent Russian troops taking Chernobyl Boris Johnson imposes new sanctions on over 100 Russian oligarchs and entities

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       'We must all ensure that freedom and democracy prevail' Sturgeon on Russian invasion.mp4

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:30

       1645723351 G7 leaders condemn 'unprovoked and completely unjustified attack’ on Ukraine

       G7 leaders have condemned Russia’s “unprovoked and completely unjustified attack” on Ukraine as a “serious violation” of international law.

       In a statement following a conference call by the heads of the leading industrial nations including Boris Johnson, they called on President Putin to withdraw his forces.

       “This crisis is a serious threat to the rules-based international order, with ramifications well beyond Europe,” the said in a joint statement.

       “There is no justification for changing internationally recognised borders by force. This has fundamentally changed the Euro/Atlantic security situation.

       “President Putin has re-introduced war to the European continent. He has put himself on the wrong side of history.

       “We call on the Russian Federation to stop the bloodshed, to immediately de-escalate and to withdraw its forces from Ukraine.”

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:22

       1645722815 Boris Johnson imposes new sanctions on over 100 Russian oligarchs and entities

       Mr Johnson has said Britain will impose economic sanctions on more than 100 Russian individuals, entities and subsidiaries – including oligarchs close to president Vladimir Putin.

       The prime minister vowed to “hobble” the Russian economy in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, as he set out the government’s plan to expand sanctions in the Commons on Thursday.

       Mr Johnson said the government intended to freeze the assets of all major Russian banks – including VTB – and would ban the Russian airline Aeroflot from landing planes in the UK.

       Adam Forrest has the details.

       Boris Johnson imposes new sanctions on over 100 Russian oligarchs and entities PM brands Putin ‘blood-stained aggressor’ as he vows to ‘hobble’ Russian economy

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:13

       1645722591 UK will implement ‘largest and most severe package of economic sanctions that Russia has ever seen’, says PM

       Mr Johnson told the Commons the UK will implement “the largest and most severe package of economic sanctions that Russia has ever seen” in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

       The prime minister is currently giving an update to MPs

       (UK Parliament)

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:09

       1645722443 Boris Johnson: Putin is a ‘blood-stained aggressor’

       Mr Johnson is giving an update to MPs in the House of Commons about the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

       He told MPs that Russian President Vladimir Putin was behaving like a “a bloodstained aggressor who believes in imperial conquest” and that he was “always determined to attack his neighbour, no matter what we did’’.

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       Watch live as Boris Johnson gives update to MPs on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:07

       1645722180 EU leaders set to agree ‘massive and severe' sanctions on Russia

       EU leaders meeting today will agree to impose further sanctions on Russia that would have “massive and severe” consequences for Moscow, according to a draft of their summit conclusions.

       “The European Council today agrees on further restrictive measures that will impose massive and severe consequences on Russia for its action, in close coordination with our partners and allies,” said the draft, which was seen by Reuters.

       “The European Council calls for the swift preparation of a further sanctions package that will also cover Belarus,” it added.

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 17:03

       1645721791 ‘Are they trying to kill us?’: Ordinary Ukrainians face reality of war as Russia attacks

       Many Ukrainians thought war would never happen but as they huddled in basements from Russian airstrikes, it was finally clear the front line had come to them, reports Kim Sengupta from Kiev.

       ‘Are they trying to kill us?’: Ordinary Ukrainians face reality of war Many Ukrainians thought war would never happen but as they huddled in basements from Russian airstrikes, it was finally clear the front line had come to them, reports Kim Sengupta from Kiev

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 16:56

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       Ukrainian ambassador says ‘people are dying as we speak’ during news conference

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 16:51

       1645721130 Liz Truss kicks Russian ambassador out of Foreign Office after saying he should be ‘ashamed’

       Foreign secretary Liz Truss has told Russia’s ambassador to the UK he should be “ashamed of himself” before kicking him out of the Foreign Office after a heated meeting.

       It comes after the cabinet minister summoned the Kremlin’s top diplomat in Britain, Andrei Kelin, for the second time this week to explain the “illegal, unprovoked invasion” of Ukraine and breach of international law.

       Despite repeated denials of plans for an invasion, Moscow last night launched a major military offensive in the Eastern European country, with air raid sirens heard ringing out in the capital, Kyiv.

       Ashley Cowburn and Adam Forrest have the details.

       Truss kicks Russian ambassador out of Foreign Office and says he should be ‘ashamed’ ‘Liz delivered her message then kicked him out’

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 16:45

       1645720722 How many US troops could help Ukraine and where are they stationed?

       President Joe Biden is reportedly considering moving American troops in Europe further east in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine after insisting the US military would not directly enter the conflict.

       A senior US official disclosed the alleged considerations to CNN on Thursday morning as Mr Biden convened a meeting of the National Security Council to discuss developments in the crisis.

       The US currently has roughly 90,000 troops on the continent, with Mr Biden steadily increasing the concentration in Eastern Europe in recent weeks as Russia ramped up its presence at the Ukrainian border.

       Over the past month, the president has deployed around 5,000 US-based troops to Europe, the majority to Germany – and more than doubled the number of troops in Poland and Romania to around 9,000 and 2,000, respectively.

       Megan Sheets reports.

       How many US troops could help Ukraine and where are they stationed? Biden has maintained that the US military will not directly enter the conflict between Russia and Ukraine

       Joe Middleton 24 February 2022 16:38

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