Moscow-Sana
Russian President Vladimir Putin announces that Russia has launched a "special military operation against Ukraine with the aim of protecting the residents of the Donbass region."
Putin: Russia does not intend to occupy Ukraine, but rather seeks to disarm it and defends itself from the danger of external challenges and "those who held Ukraine hostage"
Putin: calls on the Ukrainian military to lay down their arms.
Putin: Russia will not allow NATO to establish itself militarily on its borders, and NATO crosses red lines.
Putin: Russia's attempts to agree on security guarantees have failed and the situation has become more dangerous
Putin: Despite all our protests and fears, the NATO war machine is directly approaching Russia's borders, and no one should doubt that an attack on Russia will result in the defeat of the aggressor.
Russian Defense Ministry: High-precision weapons are disrupting the military infrastructure, military airfields and the aviation of the Ukrainian army.
Russian aviation authorities: close its airspace near the Ukrainian border to civil aviation.
Ukrainian President: Declares a state of emergency in the country.
International agencies and media: Explosions were heard in the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, in the cities of Odessa and Kharkiv, near the Russian border, and in eastern Ukraine.
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