A day after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a military invasion into Ukraine, the mayor of Kyiv on Friday, 25 February, said that Russian forces have entered the capital city, where airstrikes and gunfire incidents have been reported.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked the Ukrainian military to "Take power into your own hands," effectively asking them to throw off the government. Putin is ready to send a delegation of high-ranking officials to Minsk to hold talks with Kyiv, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
While Ukraine has claimed that over a 2,800 Russian servicemen have been killed so far, Russian forces said that 200 Ukrainian personnel were killed during the capture of an airport outside Kyiv.
Soon after the Russian operations were launched on Thursday, explosions, missile attacks, and air strikes were reported from across the nation. The Russian troops had also seized control of the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine.
Russian forces have reportedly broken into the country from the north of Kyiv region, AFP quoted Ukraine border guards as saying. They have also launched an invasion into Ukraine through Crimea in the south
Martial Law was declared in Ukraine on Thursday morning
The Indian Ambassador in Kyiv has issued a statement, saying that the embassy is working to evacuate Indian nationals from Ukraine
The US, UK and the European Union have imposed heavy sanctions on Russia
Putin has blamed NATO for "pumping modern weapons and ammunition" into Ukraine and warned against Ukraine joining NATO, a move it feels brings Western Europe closer to the Russian borders
Both NATO and Ukraine have rejected this demand, which has motivated Russia to declare military action
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