Russia-Ukraine Conflict: What We Know So Far As Vladimir Putin Announces Military Op | 10 Points

Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday declared the beginning of a 'special military operation' in Ukraine. As he spoke, big explosions were heard in Kyiv, Kharkiv and other areas.

This Maxar satellite image taken and released on February 23, 2022 shows a military convoy, south of Golovchino | Photo: AFP

New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday announced the beginning of a “special military operation” in Ukraine, and warned other countries against any attempt to interfere  with the action, saying that would lead to “consequences they have never seen”.

Addressing the country in a televised speech early morning, he also pledged that he would seek to demilitarise but not occupy the country.

Justifying the military operation, Putin said it was needed to “protect civilians” in eastern Ukraine. 

As Putin spoke, big explosions were heard in Kyiv, Kharkiv and other areas of Ukraine.

Earlier, making a plea for peace, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had rejected Moscow’s claims that his country posed any threat to Russia.

US President Joe Biden has, meanwhile, said the world will “hold Russia accountable”.

“Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way,” he said in a tweet. 

Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way.

The world will hold Russia accountable.

— President Biden (@POTUS) February 24, 2022

In a statement, Biden said: “We will coordinate with our NATO Allies to ensure a strong, united response that deters any aggression against the Alliance. The United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way.”

Here are 10 things to know about the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Russia-Ukraine Crisis: 10 Points

1. 1. The United Nations Security Council is finalising a draft of a resolution that would declare that Russia is violating the UN Charter, international law and a 2015 resolution of the council on Ukraine, the AP report quoted a diplomat as saying on condition of anonymity as the discussions were private. The diplomat said the resolution will urge Russia to come back into compliance immediately. The UN held an emergency meeting on Ukraine Wednesday night, which saw no support for Russia’s decision to recognise the two rebel regions of Ukraine as independent. “If indeed an operation is being prepared, I have only one thing to say from the bottom of my heart: President Putin, stop your troops from attacking Ukraine. Give peace a chance. Too many people have already died,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the council.
   2. Global stocks dived Thursday, while the dollar, gold and oil prices rocketed higher as Russian announced military operation in Ukraine, and the latter said Moscow had launched a full-scale invasion.
   3. Besides those from Kyiv in the north, there are reports of military engagements in Odessa in the south too, where Russian troops were said to be landing, The New York Times reported. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytry Kuleba meanwhile said it was “a full-scale invasion of Ukraine”. “This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend itself and will win. The world can and must stop Putin,” he wrote on Twitter. 
   4. Ukraine President Zelenskyy’s appealed for peace in an emotional address early Thursday that. Speaking in Russian, he said: “The people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine want peace. But if we come under attack, if we face an attempt to take away our country, our freedom, our lives and lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. When you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs.” According to an AP report, Zelenskyy said the Kremlin didn’t respond when he asked for a call with Putin late Wednesday. Ukraine imposed a nationwide state of emergency Wednesday, allowing authorities to impose restrictions on movement, and ban political parties and organizations.
   5. Kyiv is pinning hopes on other countries to take on Russia by imposing sanctions. Taking to Twitter, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the West should target Putin where it hurts. “Hit his economy and cronies. Hit more. Hit hard. Hit now,” Kuleba wrote.
   6. US President Joe Biden Wednesday allowed sanctions to move forward against the company that built the Russia-to-Germany Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, and also against the company’s CEO. Germany also said Tuesday that it was indefinitely suspending the pipeline. The United Kingdom has also put tough sanctions against Russia, targeting key banks that fund the Russian military and oligarchs. The European Union package also targets Russian legislators in the lower house and makes it tougher for Moscow to get on EU financial and capital markets. The US targeted high-ranking Russian officials and two Russian banks considered close to the Kremlin and Russia’s military with more than $80 billion in assets.
   7. Ukraine’s economy is hit hard under the threat of war, with embassies and international offices in Kyiv shutting down and flights getting canceled. Within weeks, hundreds of millions of dollars in investment dried up, media reports said.
   8. Ukraine continues to be under cyberattacks, with the country’s parliament and other official websites were hit with another wave of attacks Wednesday. The attackers who remain unidentified also infected hundreds of computers with destructive malware, cybersecurity researchers were quoted as saying.
   9. Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik, the heads of Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), the breakaway regions of Ukraine that Russia recognised as independent entities this week, have asked Putin to offer help in “repelling the aggression from the Ukrainian Armed Forces” to avoid “civilian casualties and prevent a humanitarian disaster in Donbass”, Russian news agency TASS quoted Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying in a press conference. The local media are portraying Russia as coming to the rescue of eastern Ukraine “tormented by Ukraine’s aggression”.
   10. While Russia is inviting sanctions from the West due to its actions, it also seems to have the support of some countries, mainly China. Beijing has accused the US of stoking the crisis in Ukraine, with its foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying saying Washington “keeps sending weapons to Ukraine, creating fear and panic and even playing up the threat of war”, AP reported. Moscow and Beijing had earlier, in a joint statement, backed Russia’s objections to NATO accepting Ukraine and other former Soviet republics as members.