UPDATE: Ukrainian officials are reporting that Russia has captured the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The same sources say that Moscow hopes this is a signal to NATO to not interfere.
Putin declares war on Ukraine, Pres. Biden is expected to announce severe sanctions against Russia sometime on Thursday; the US sends troops into the Baltics, over 150 Russian officials sign open letter condemning the invasion.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declares war on Ukraine, attacks
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine late Wednesday night and ordered an attack, initiating an invasion early Thursday.
Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres urged Putin to “stop your troops from attacking Ukraine.”
Putin described the invasion as a “special military occupation” as a matter of self-defense, saying the goal was not to occupy the country but to “demilitarize” and de-Nazify” Ukraine.
Putin warns West of greatest consequences in history if it intervenes
The Russian leader also gave a stern warning to the West against intervention to defend Ukraine.
“To anyone who would consider interfering from the outside – if you do, you will face the consequences greater than any you have faced in history,” Putin said during his address.
Military and civilian casualties in Ukraine
Over 40 soldiers have died, with dozens more wounded, and at least ten civilians have been killed by Russian shelling, the BBC and other sources reported.
While most targets have been military facilities, at least one residential apartment building was struck.
Early Thursday, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed its military had already destroyed 74 Ukrainian military facilities, including 11 airbases, the Blaze reported.
In several cities, traffic jams have snarled drivers trying to evacuate. Crowds at bus stations and borders are growing as people attempt to flee. ATMs have been trained throughout several cities as residents try to get money.
US sends troops to the Baltics
At least 40 US ‘Sky Soldiers’ from the 173rd Airborne Brigade arrived in Latvia from Italy early Thursday, and the first contingent of 800 American troops and equipment arrived in the Baltics, headed to parts of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to bolster Ukraine’s Eastern flank, the Daily Mail reported.
The US and NATO members are treaty-bound to defend the Baltic nations of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, which joined NATO in 2004.
Russian officials sign open letter condemning invasion
Over 150 senior Russian municipal officials signed an open letter condemning Putin’s invasion of Ukraine as ‘an unprecedented atrocity’ with no ‘justification’ and warned of ‘catastrophic consequences,’ while urging citizens ‘not to participate,’ the Daily Mail reported.
