A clear message to the US and NATO was sent by Russian President Vladimir Putin during his speech announcing the launch of “special military operations” in Donbass.

Putin said, “Any external actor who thinks of intervening should know that if he does so, he will face the greatest consequences he has ever faced in history. I hope you will listen to me. ”

A clear statement by the Russian president, who wants to show once again the power of the Russian war machine. Besides, during the anniversary of Defender of the Fatherland Day he had referred to weapons systems “that no one on the planet has“.

“Weapons unlike any other in the world have been put on full combat readiness. We will continue to develop many weapons systems, including supersonic ones based on new missile technologies, and expand the use of advanced digital technologies and artificial intelligence elements,” Putin said.

Such weapon systems are “weapons of the future, which increase the combat potential of our country‘s Armed Forces“, he said.

Sirens in Kiev and Mariupol

Within minutes of Putin‘s short televised speech, atabout 5 a. m. Ukrainian time, explosions were heard near major Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kiev. Already, strong explosions have been heard since morning in Kiev, Odessa (south) and many areas of eastern Ukraine.

In the capital, at least two powerful explosions were heard in the centre, followed immediately by ambulance sirens. Kiev residents sought safety inshelters as explosions were heard outside the city.

The scope of the Russian attack seems to be enormous. Ukraine‘s Interior Ministry reported that the country was attacked by cruise and ballistic missiles, with Russia appearing to target infrastructure near major cities such as Kiev, Kharkiv, Mariupol and Dnipro.

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry said in a statement via Telegram that rocket attacks are targeting Ukrainian fighter jets at an airfield outside Kiev. The State Emergency Service of Ukraine reports that attacks have been launched against 10 Ukrainian regions, mainly in the east and south of the country. At least seven “heavy” airraids on Vasilkovskyairport outside Kiev, where Ukraine‘s militarybombers are kept, the Kiev administrationsays

Explosions from artillery rockets lit up the night sky as shelling began near Mariupol, according to video footage.

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In Mariupol, the largest city in the Eastern Front sector with half a million inhabitants, there is a port of strategic importance. Several residents there reported hearing artillery fire from a neighbourhood in the eastern sector of the city.

Closer to the front, in Kramatorsk, at least four powerful explosions were heard.

Six hundred kilometres from there, in southern Ukraine, in Odessa, a port on the Black Sea, explosions were also heard.

The Russian news agency Interfax reported a short while ago that Russian forces have arrived and are now operating in Mariupol and Odessa.

A senior adviser to Ukraine‘s Interior Ministry said it appeared that Russian troops might soon move into Kharkiv, which is about 20 miles from the border.