New Delhi: Ukraine breaks diplomatic ties with Russia, news agency AFP quoted President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as saying amid Russia’s full-fledged air and ground military attack on Ukriane.
"We will give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country. Be ready to support Ukraine in the squares of our cities," Zelenskyy said, as quoted by AFP.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced the start of a “special military operation” in Ukraine, and warned other countries against any attempt to interfere with the action and said that it would lead to “consequences they have never seen”.
Russia’s commencement of a military attack on Ukraine has led to a chaos in the latter country. According to a report by news agency Reuters, more than 40 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and several dozen wounded in the ongoing attack, Adviser to Ukraine President Office said.
Earlier in the day, five Russian planes and one helicopter were shot down by Ukraine in Luhansk and moments later, Russia confirmed taking out military infrastructure at Ukraine's air bases and ‘suppressed’ its air defences.
Justifying the military operation, Putin said it was needed to “protect civilians” in eastern Ukraine.
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