Putin's tanks roll into Ukraine over the Belarus border 120 miles from Kiev as he launches full-scale invasion to 'denazify' the nation: Martial law declared and 'hundreds' of Ukrainians dead
- Vladimir Putin in an early morning address on Thursday said that he had invaded Ukraine
- Putin said that it was a 'special military operation' in the Donbas region to 'demilitarize' the area
- Putin insisted that it was not an occupation, as explosions reported in Kiev, Mariupol, Kharkiv and Odessa
- Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a video message to the nation early on Thursday morning, declaring martial law and urging people to stay at home
- Zelenskyy said: 'We are working. The army is working. Don't panic. We are strong. We are ready for everything. We will defeat everyone. Because we are Ukraine'
- Ukraine's interior ministry said there have been hundreds of casualties, CNN reported - despite Russia insisting that it was avoiding populated areas and only attacking military targets
- Unconfirmed reports on Twitter appeared to show a huge seaborne landing by Russian forces in the Black Sea port of Odessa, involving large landing craft and helicopters shortly before 6am local time
- Ukraine's border force said early on Thursday that they were attacked from the north by a joint Russian-Belorussian force
- Reuters reported that Ukraine's air defense systems shot down a Russian plane in the east of the country, near Kharkiv
- Biden will address the nation at midday on Thursday and issued a statement saying: 'President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering'
- Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, said he was 'appalled by the horrific events in Ukraine' and added: 'The UK and our allies will respond decisively'
- Ukraine was earlier on Wednesday placed on a war footing with state of emergency declared; 200,000 military reservists called up; border areas restricted and citizens given right to arm themselves
- Video footage appeared to show clouds of smoke rising up into the night sky near Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, but it was unconfirmed whether it was as a result of shelling
By HARRIET ALEXANDER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and NICK CRAVEN IN KIEV and WILL STEWART IN MOSCOW and RACHEL BUNYAN FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 12:59 AEDT, 24 February 2022 | UPDATED: 16:58 AEDT, 24 February 2022
Vladimir Putin has ordered an invasion of Ukraine, describing it as a 'special military operation' and saying he wants to 'demilitarize', not occupy, the country.
Within hours, Ukraine's interior ministry said there had been hundreds of casualties, CNN reported - despite Russia insisting early Thursday morning that they were only attacking military installations, and were avoiding populated areas.
Reuters reported that Ukraine's air defenses shot down a Russian plane in the early hours of Thursday in the east of the country, near Kharkiv.
Ukraine's border force said that their posts in the north have come under attack from both Russian and Belorussian forces - a hugely significant development, meaning Russia is not acting alone, and is attacking from all sides.
A Ukrainian government spokesman confirmed that Russia had invaded over the Belarus border as well, only 120 miles from Kiev.
He said: 'The state border of Ukraine was attacked by troops from Russia and Belarus.
'At about 5am, the state border of Ukraine, in the area with the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, was attacked by Russian troops supported by Belarus.
'Attacks on border units, border patrols and checkpoints are carried out with the use of artillery, heavy equipment and small arms.
'This is happening within Luhansk, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Zhytomyr regions.'
The government spokesman also said that Ukraine was attacked from Crimea.
'The work of enemy sabotage and reconnaissance groups is also recorded,' the spokesman continued.
'Depending on the situation on the border, border guards together with the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the National Guard of Ukraine are firing at the enemy.
'Information on injuries among border guards is being clarified.'
The Russian president early on Thursday told Ukrainian service members to 'lay down their arms and go home' as he declared war on Ukraine in an early morning address to the nation.
Putin said Russia could not exist with a 'constant threat emanating from the territory of Ukraine' and clashes between Russian and Ukrainian solders was 'inevitable'.
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, declared martial law in the early hours of Thursday, in a video message to the people urging people to remain at home and stay strong. He said he had just spoken to Joe Biden.
'We are working. The army is working,' he said.
'Don't panic. We are strong. We are ready for everything. We will defeat everyone. Because we are Ukraine.'
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, posted a video message early on Thursday and urged Ukrainians to stay at home, and remain calm, telling them to have faith in their country
Zelensky speaks to country, declares martial law in Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLErD0vSC3Q
Tanks can be seen, to the right of the image, rolling past a border post between Ukraine and Belarus in the early hours of Thursday
Unconfirmed reports said that Russian forces had destroyed or rendered unusable the Ukrainian navy, and taken control of Boryspil Airport in Kiev.
Access to the Black Sea and Azov Sea was cut off.
More unconfirmed reports on Twitter appeared to show a huge seaborne landing by Russian forces in the Black Sea port of Odessa, involving large landing craft and helicopters shortly before 6am local time.
President Joe Biden will address the nation at noon on Thursday, and on Wednesday night he condemned Russia's 'unprovoked and unjustified attack.' He was speaking to Ukraine's president.
Biden said in a statement: 'President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering.
'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.'
Biden said he will be monitoring the situation from Washington, DC, and will continue to get regular updates from his national security team.
The developments came as:
- Explosions were heard across Ukraine, with the capital Kiev coming under attack and the city's main airport appearing to be a target, as well as a nearby military base.
- Reports said the port city of Odessa was coming under amphibious assault, while another Black Sea port city, Mariupol, was under fierce attack.
- Military assaults appeared underway on Kharkiv in the far east of Ukraine.
- Ukraine's government declared martial law and urged people to stay at home as the onslaught continues.
- Russia insisted in the early hours of Thursday that it was targeting military installations and avoiding populated areas, but Ukraine said there had been hundreds of casualties.
- Joe Biden was speaking to Ukraine's president in the early hours of Thursday, having earlier through his UN ambassador voiced his strong continued support for the country.
Vladimir Putin is pictured in the early hours of Thursday morning declaring war on Ukraine, in what he termed a 'special military operation'
President Joe Biden, pictured on Wednesday, condemned Putin's invasion of Ukraine
Russia President Vladimir Putin orders military operation in Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETj1dWJZBhI
Explosions are seen in the early hours of Thursday in Kharkiv, in eastern Ukraine
An explosion is seen in the early hours of Thursday in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv
Kharkiv, with a population of 1.4 million, appeared to be under attack in the early hours of Thursday
Footage shared on social media from Odessa appeared to show an amphibious assault
CNN: Ukraine's Interior Ministry says there have already been hundreds of casualties
Biden announced he will join G7 counterparts on Thursday morning, and will address the country later on Thursday to 'announce the further consequences the United States and its Allies and partners will impose on Russia.'
'We will also coordinate with our NATO Allies to ensure a strong, united response that deters any aggression against the Alliance. Tonight, Jill and I are praying for the brave and proud people of Ukraine,' the statement added.
Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, tweeted early on Thursday: 'I am appalled by the horrific events in Ukraine and I have spoken to President Zelenskyy to discuss next steps. President Putin has chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction by launching this unprovoked attack on Ukraine.
'The UK and our allies will respond decisively.'
Metadata of Putin's declaration of war video shows it was recorded on Monday evening, but only broadcast early Thursday.
At the time, some Russian officials were denying any intention to invade.
The Russian armed forces are not inflicting any missile, air or artillery strikes on the cities of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense in Moscow told RIA Novosti.
Military infrastructure, air defense facilities, military airfields and aviation of the Ukrainian army were being disabled by high-precision weapons, they said.
Nothing threatens the civilian population of Ukraine, they claimed.
All flights cancelled at Russian airports in Krasnodar, Sochi, and Anapa, close to the Black Sea.
Rostov also reported cancelled flights.
Within minutes of Putin's public address, explosions could be heard in the capital city of Kiev as well as the city of Kramatorsk in central Ukraine, and Odessa in the south.
Across Ukraine, cruise and ballistic missiles were destroying military infrastructure and strategically important facilities, according to unofficial Russian sources.
Mariupol, on the Black Sea 50 miles from the Russian border, appeared to be under fierce attack. Taking this strategic location would give the Donbas republics access to the sea.
The moment Ukraine and the rest of Europe had dreaded for months finally came shortly after 4.35am local time when huge explosions were heard in Kiev and other cities across the country.
Terrified citizens rushed to bomb shelters, though no air raid warnings sounded in the capital – only the frequent muffled crump of missile or air strikes breaking through the pre-dawn stillness.
In Kiev, people were sheltering in basements as the sounds of distant explosions became a constant backdrop.
Within an hour Russians special force and airborne troops were reported to be on the ground at Kiev's Boryspil Airport, amid fierce fighting.
A woman in the Ukrainian capital said: 'I was woken by a friend.
'I am in the centre of Kiev.
'I hear the sound of distant explosions and ambulance sirens.'
At 7.05am the first air raid sirens were heard in central Kiev.
A CNN reporter in Kiev reported hearing blasts live on air in the early hours of Thursday morning.
'I just heard a big bang right here behind me. I've never heard anything like it,' said Matthew Chance, senior international correspondent for the network.
Chance said that he heard between seven and eight explosions and quickly put on his flak jacket and headgear while he continued to report from a balcony in the Ukrainian capital.
A CNN reporter in the Ukrainian capital Kiev reporting hearing blasts in the early hours of Thursday morning
Chance did not want to take any chances and set about putting on his flak jacket and helmet
'There are big explosions taking place. I can't see them or explain what they are.
'But I will tell you the U.S has warned the Ukrainian authorities there could be air strikes and ground attacks as well around the country, including the capital.
'I don't know if that's what's occurring now but it's a remarkable coincidence that the explosions come just minutes after Putin gave his speech,' Chance explained.
'This is the first time we've heard anything. It has been absolutely silent. This is the first time. It has to be more than just a coincidence.
'I think it's safe where I am. I have a flak jacket,' Chance remarked before ducking down to put on his protective gear.
Chance, located on a balcony in the Ukrainian capital quickly put on his protective headgear
Chance, who had been to the Ukrainian capital many times in recent years said he had 'never heard anything like it'
He suggested that the blasts he heard in the Ukrainian capital but still some distance away from the center.
'It was so quiet in Ukraine tonight up until those explosions,' Chance explained.
The blasts came within minutes of Putin saying Russia would conduct a military operation in eastern Ukraine.
Explosions could also be heard from Ukraine in the Russian city of Belgorod.
Putin told Russians: 'I have decided to conduct a special military operation. Russia cannot exist with a constant threat emanating from the territory of Ukraine.
'You and I have been left with no opportunity to protect our people other than the one we use today.'
It comes after explosions were also heard near the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, as fears mounted that shelling is underway.
Residents in the city, which is located in south eastern Ukraine, have been woken up at 3.30am this morning by blasts 30 miles from the Russian border.
Video footage appeared to show clouds of smoke rising up into the night sky near Mariupol, but it was unconfirmed whether it was as a result of shelling.
Massive explosions hit the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ4dlCjPzfo
Putin earlier this week said he wanted to take the major Azov Sea Port of Mariupol, which handles 50 per cent Ukraine's steel and mineral exports.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Russia's actions were a 'grave breach of international law' and that allies would meet to address the 'renewed aggression'.
He said on Twitter: 'I strongly condemn #Russia's reckless attack on #Ukraine, which puts at risk countless civilian lives. This is a grave breach of international law & a serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security. #NATO Allies will meet to address Russia's renewed aggression.'
The British foreign secretary Liz Truss tweeted her condemnation of the attack just after 4am local time.
'I strongly condemn the appalling, unprovoked attack President Putin has launched on the people of Ukraine,' she said.
'We stand with Ukraine and we will work with our international partners to respond to this terrible act of aggression.'
The explosions come just hours after the U.S. warned the Ukrainian government that Putin's troops are 'ready to go now' with an invasion of Ukraine, with 80 per cent of Russian soldiers now assembled around the country in attack positions.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken issued a further stark warning and said, hours before the invasion, that he believed Russia would invade before the night is over.
Russia on Wednesday afternoon issued a notice to airmen (NOTAM) which closed the airspace along its northeastern border with Ukraine to all civilian air traffic.
Ukraine later said early on Thursday it had restricted civilian flights in its airspace due to 'potential hazard'.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed that the Ukrainian people will 'fight back' if Putin threatens their freedom and lives by launching a full-scale invasion.
President Zelenskyy made an emotional address to his nation after Moscow-backed rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine asked Putin for military assistance in fending off Ukrainian 'aggression'.
In an emotional televised address on Wednesday night, President Zelenskyy 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.'
The Ukrainian President said he had tried to call Putin this evening, but there was 'no answer, only silence', adding that Moscow now has around 200,000 soldiers by Ukraine's borders.
The United Nations Security Council quickly scheduled an emergency meeting Wednesday night - the second in three days - at Ukraine's request.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called the separatists' request 'a further escalation of the security situation.'
Footage shows smoke supposedly rising on the skyline after the blasts were heard near Mariupol, eastern Ukraine
Russian armored vehicles are loaded onto railway platforms at a railway station in the Rostov-on-Don region, not far from Russia-Ukraine border, on Wednesday
Putin has recognized two areas in eastern Ukraine as independent and authorized Russian troops to go in on 'peacekeeping' missions. Rebels already hold part of that territory (in red) but Putin has recognized a much-wider region (yellow)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vowed that the Ukrainian people will 'fight back'
Earlier on Wednesday, Ukraine was placed on a war footing: A state of emergency was declared and approved by parliament, 200,000 military reservists called up, border zones were restricted and three million Ukrainians told to leave Russia, with Kiev acknowledging for the first time that an attack could now take place anywhere, at any time.
Biden on Wednesday warned President Zelenskyy of an 'imminent' attack by Putin's troops in the next 48 hours - , just hours after Ukraine was hit by a 'massive' cyberattack targeting its government and banks.
But Blinken cut that time frame of a Russian invasion drastically and said on Wednesday night he expected Russia to invade Ukraine before the night was over.
U.S. intelligence chiefs knew Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, was at particular risk of being targeted in a Russian invasion as it is close to the Ukrainian-Russian border.
On Wednesday night, a huge military convoy of more than 100 trucks with soldiers were heading in the direction of the city.
Vladimir Putin praised the battle readiness of his armies and boasted of developing hypersonic weapons as he called Russia's security interests 'non-negotiable' in an address to mark Defender of the Fatherland Day on Wednesday
Boris Johnson is briefed by the Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin at the Ministry of Defence on the situation in Ukraine on Tuesday
A Russian attack on Ukraine was expected to start in the Donbas region (top right) with attempts to expand rebel-held areas, that could either be in coordination with or before a much wider assault on the entire country (top right). Should the fighting spill over Ukraine's borders, it could drag in NATO forces stationed in Europe (bottom centre)
In a significant move ahead of the invasion, the Kremlin said rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine asked Russia for military assistance on Wednesday to help fend off Ukrainian 'aggression'.
Many observers have suggested baseless and unfounded claims of Ukrainian military aggression to Moscow-backed separatist forces would form the pretext to a full-scale invasion.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the rebel chiefs in the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk wrote to Putin, pleading with him to intervene after Ukrainian shelling caused civilian deaths and crippled vital infrastructure.
But the White House said the separatists' request for Russian help was another example of the sort of 'false-flag' operations the West has consistently warned Moscow would use to create a justification for war.
'We'll continue to call out what we see as false flag operations or efforts to spread misinformation about what the actual status is on the ground,' White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.
In an apparent reference to Putin's move to sanction the deployment of the Russian military to 'maintain peace' in eastern Ukraine, President Zelenskyy warned that 'this step could mark the start of a big war on the European continent.'
'Any provocation, any spark could trigger a blaze that will destroy everything,' he said.
He challenged the Russian propaganda claims, saying that 'you are told that this blaze will bring freedom to the people of Ukraine, but the Ukrainian people are free.'
Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby warned that any attack by Putin 'won't be bloodless'.
'There will be suffering,' Kirby said. 'There will be sacrifice. And all of that must and should be laid at his feet. Because he's doing this by choice.
Two separate convoys with no identifiable insignia were seen moving towards the city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine along different roads from the direction of the Russian border, a Reuters witness said on Wednesday.
One convoy included nine tanks and an infantry fighting vehicle, while the other was made up of trucks and fuel tankers, said the reporter, who was in the territory of two Russia-backed rebel regions recognized as independent by Moscow on Monday.
Russia has up to 190,000 troops backed by tanks, artillery, fighter jets and bombers surrounding Ukraine from three sides, as the US warns of a full-scale invasion of the whole country including an attack on the capital, Kiev
Russian armored vehicles and artillery pieces are seen at a rail yard in the Rostov-on-Don region, close to the border with Ukraine, as the country was today put on a war footing
Russian troops in full packs are seen marching through mud at a rail yard in Rostov-on-Don, in southern Russia close to the frontline with Ukraine, with armored vehicles loaded on to train carriages nearby
And on Wednesday night, the crack troops of Russia's advanced units were banned from using all mobile phones in what was believed to be a key sign that they would invade Kiev-controlled Ukraine.
The 1st and 2nd Army Corps in Donbas received an order to turn off mobile phones, according to the volunteer project Informnapalm on its Facebook page.
'Attention! ….(we) received information from insiders from ORDLO that at 20:40 (Moscow time) all advanced units of the 1st and 2nd Army Corps were ordered to completely turn off phones and walkie-talkies.
'They were strictly forbidden to go on the air for this time, they were even ordered to remove the batteries from their phones. As an option, the Russians will probably scan the space and all available phones on the line of contact in order to make target designations by coordinates,' the statement said.
Ukraine's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, tweeted on Wednesday that a night shift of the Titan chemicals plant in annexed Crimea had been evacuated from the facility.
He said it was a possible preparation for another staged provocation by Russia, which annexed Crimea in 2014.
'Moscow seems to have no limits in attempts to falsify pretexts for further aggression,' he wrote.
Meanwhile, the websites of Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Security Service, and Cabinet of Ministers were all out of action Wednesday afternoon after a cyberattack.
Bomb threats were also phoned in to several government buildings, thought to be part of a psychological pressure campaign by Moscow.
Deputy prime minister Mykhailo Fedorov said banks were also targeted in a 'massive' distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack - which uses computer networks to bombard websites with information until they crash - in what analysts have warned would likely be the first stage of a Russian attack.
Russian armored vehicles are pictured at a railway station in the Rostov region, amid fears Putin is about to attack
Moscow's foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that it would evacuate diplomats from the country soon, saying this was in order to 'protect their lives', and the withdrawal appeared to be underway on Wednesday, with workers pictured leaving the building in Kiev
A convoy of Russian military vehicles is seen as the vehicles move towards border in Donbas region of eastern Ukraine on Wednesday
As the noose tightened, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged on Wednesday to send more weapons to help Ukraine defend itself against what the US has warned will be an all-out Russian assault.
Johnson also promised more and tougher sanctions against Russia if Putin escalates further.
Earlier in the day, Putin had given a sabre-rattling address to his troops to mark Defender of the Fatherland Day, praising their 'battle readiness' while saying he is assured that they will fight to defend Russian security interests - which he called 'non-negotiable'. Russia also evacuated staff from its Kiev embassy.
Ukraine's security agency claimed 45,000 plastic body bags have now been ordered to the Russian frontlines, giving the first hint of the amount lives Putin is willing to sacrifice to get what he wants - after Joe Biden said supplies of blood for transfusions have also been brought in.
A convoy of Russian military vehicles is seen as the vehicles move towards border in Donbas region of eastern Ukraine on Wednesday
A convoy of Russian military vehicles is seen as the vehicles move towards border in Donbas region of eastern Ukraine on February 23
Russia has for months been massing troops, tanks, and support vehicles (pictured) on the border with Ukraine and is now thought to have up to 190,000 men ready to attack the country
Russia also began evacuating diplomatic staff from its Kiev embassy, with the flag lowered over the building (pictured, workers leave the building with their baggage on Wednesday, February 23)
Moscow's foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that it would evacuate diplomats from the country soon, saying this was in order to 'protect their lives', and the withdrawal appeared to be underway on Wednesday, with workers pictured leaving the building in Kiev
Boris Johnson is briefed by the Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin at the Ministry of Defence on the situation in Ukraine on Tuesday
Blinken announced that he has called off a high-level summit with Russian Foreign Secretary Sergei Lavrov scheduled for Thursday, saying it 'does not make sense' to go ahead with peace negotiations when an invasion is already underway.
Russia today began evacuating diplomatic staff from Ukraine, with the flag lowered over the embassy in Kiev.
Moscow's foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that it would evacuate diplomats from the country soon, saying this was in order to 'protect their lives'.
Asked if the evacuation had begun, the embassy's spokesperson Denis Golenko told AFP by phone today: 'Yes.'
Golenko said the evacuation was 'linked to the fact that Western embassies announced evacuations of some of their staff, and that our ministry also took this decision.'
Some Western embassies, including the United States and Britain, moved their staff to the city of Lviv near the Polish border.
They did so fearing a Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying the capital could come under attack.
Fighting also escalated along the frontlines between separatist forces and Ukraine's men overnight, with one Ukrainian soldier killed and six injured in shelling. A house was also hit in the village of Muratovo.
The Russian-backed leader of the breakaway Donetsk region said on Wednesday that he wanted to peacefully settle its borders with Ukraine but reserved the right to ask 'big Russia' for help.
Denis Pushilin, who heads the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic that was recognized by Russia this week, said he favored dialogue with Ukraine in the first instance.
But he told a news conference the situation in their long-running conflict had become critical and the separatists had accelerated a mobilization of forces, in which healthy men between 18 and 55 have been called up to fight.
'We will win. With people like this, we will win. With such a country, with big Russia, which we respect and value,' he said.
'We have no right to lose, or even to doubt in our victory.'
Russian armoured troop transports are pictured in an assembly area, amid fears they could soon roll across the border and into Ukraine - sparking the most-serious war in Europe for decades
Russia has alternately claimed to be staging routine training exercises in its border regions, withdrawing its forces and reinforcing its allies in the region - all of which has been dismissed by the West as pretense (pictured, a Russian soldier)
People hold placards during a pro-Ukrainian demonstration outside the Russian Embassy, in London, UK, on Wednesday night
The Brandenburg Gate is lit in the blue and yellow colours of the Ukrainian national flag in solidarity with Ukraine and its people on Wednesday in Berlin, Germany
Tensions between East and West dramatically ratcheted up on Tuesday as Putin was granted authority by Russia's lap-dog parliament to use military force abroad, a move that paves the way for him to attack Ukraine.
Hours earlier, he had given a speech in which he made expansionist claims about rebel-held territory in Ukraine's east - saying Russia has recognized areas currently held by Ukrainian troops as belonging to the separatists.
That has sparked fears he is preparing for a land-grab of that territory under the auspices of a 'peacekeeping' mission to the region which could extend even beyond those boundaries and all the way to the city of Kharkiv - where several major Ukrainian military bases are located.
Putin has up to 190,000 troops backed by thousands of tanks and artillery units, hundreds of fighter jets and dozens of bombers encircling Ukraine from three sides - with up to 10,000 men already thought to have moved into rebel-held areas of Donetsk and Luhansk on the current frontlines with Ukrainian forces.
Western nations have tried to present a united front in the face of the invasion, with more than two dozen European Union members unanimously agreeing to levy their own initial set of sanctions against Russian officials.
Germany also said it was halting the process of certifying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia - a lucrative deal long sought by Moscow but criticized by the US for increasing Europe's reliance on Russian energy.
Biden on Wednesday announced he was sanctioning the company building Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline and its CEO - a coordinated response by Germany and the U.S. to Russia's incursion into Ukraine.
'Today, I have directed my administration to impose sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG and its corporate officers,' Biden said in a statement. 'These steps are another piece of our initial tranche of sanctions in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine. As I have made clear, we will not hesitate to take further steps if Russia continues to escalate.'
Biden waived sanctions last year against Nord Stream 2 AG, when the project was almost completed, in return for an agreement from Germany to take action against Russia if it used gas as a weapon or attacked Ukraine.
The U.S. also moved to cut off Russia's government from Western finance, sanctioning two of its banks and blocking it from trading in its debt on American and European markets.
The administration's actions hit civilian leaders in Russia's leadership hierarchy and two Russian banks considered especially close to the Kremlin and Russia's military, with more than $80 billion in assets.
That includes freezing all of those banks' assets under US jurisdictions.
Russia warned today that new sanctions would be met with a 'strong response'.
'There should be no doubt - sanctions will meet a strong response, not necessarily symmetrical, but well-calibrated and sensitive for the American side,' the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said that Washington had slapped a new round of sanctions in order to 'change Russia's course.'
'Russia has proved that, with all the sanctions costs, it is capable of minimizing the damage. And even more so, sanctions pressure cannot affect our determination to firmly defend our interests,' the statement said.
The Russian-backed leader of the breakaway Donetsk region, Denis Pushilin, said on Wednesday that he had accelerated a mobilization of forces, in which healthy men between 18 and 55 have been called up to fight
A Ukrainian pilot boards a fighter jet at an air base in an undisclosed region of the country early Wednesday, as he takes part in combat readiness drills amid fears Russian is about to invade
A Ukrainian Su-34 fighter jet, originally made in Russia, takes off from an airfield in an undisclosed region of the country amid fears that Russia is about to stage a full-scale invasion
The tail fins of Ukrainian Su-34 fighter jets are seen at an undisclosed air field somewhere in Ukraine as one takes to the skies during combat readiness checks ahead of what could be a full-scale Russian invasion
Ukrainian firefighters attempt to put out a blazing house in the village of Muratovo, close to the frontlines with pro-Moscow rebels in Luhansk, after it was shelled overnight
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Russian volunteers carry medical supplies to a warehouse in the city of Taganrog, close to the border of Ukraine, after Biden warned that blood is being moved to the frontlines in what is considered to be one of the final moves before an attack
A wreath laying ceremony is held at the Fallen Warriors Memorial in Rostov-on-Don, where Russian troops are gathering
Frontline Ukrainian soldiers sent texts telling them to abandon posts
Ukrainian soldiers on the frontlines with pro-Moscow rebels have been sent texts warning of an imminent attack and told to abandon their posts.
'Moscow gave a go to the use of [Russian] Armed Forces in the Donbas,' one text read, referring to a wide area of eastern Ukraine where large parts of the country's armed forces are currently deployed.
'There's still time to save your life and leave the [area],' the text message added.
Another read: 'Ukrainian military servicemen! The Russian army is already in Donetsk and Luhansk. Return home while it isn't too late!'
There are fears Putin is about to stage a land-grab in eastern Ukraine after acknowledging the whole of the Donbass - including areas held by Ukraine - as independent and authorising Russian troops to go in on a 'peacekeeping' mission.
If his troops do try to advance into Ukrainian areas, then it would likely spark direct fighting between the two militaries which could quickly escalate into all-out war.
Biden, though, did hold back some of the broadest and toughest of the financial penalties contemplated by the US, including sanctions that would reinforce the hold that Germany put on any startup of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline; an export ban that would deny Russia US high tech for its industries and military; and sweeping bans that could cripple Russia's ability to do business with the rest of the world.
Biden said he was moving additional US troops to the Baltics, though he described the deployments as purely 'defensive,' asserting, 'We have no intention of fighting Russia.'
The US is sending about 800 infantry troops and 40 attack aircraft to NATO's eastern flank from other locations within Europe, according to a senior defense official. In addition, a contingent of F-35 strike fighters and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters will also be relocated.
Earlier Tuesday, members of Russia's upper house, the Federation Council, voted unanimously to allow Putin to use military force outside the country - effectively formalizing a Russian military deployment to the rebel regions, where an eight-year conflict has killed nearly 14,000 people.
Shortly afterward, Putin laid out three conditions to end the crisis that has threatened to plunge Europe back into war, raising the specter of massive casualties, energy shortages across the continent and global economic chaos.
Putin said the crisis could be resolved if Kiev recognizes Russia's sovereignty over Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed in 2014, renounces its bid to join NATO and partially demilitarizes.
The West has decried the annexation of Crimea as a violation of international law and has previously flatly rejected permanently barring Ukraine from NATO.
Asked whether he has sent any Russian troops into Ukraine and how far they could go, Putin responded: 'I haven't said that the troops will go there right now.'
He added that 'it's impossible to forecast a specific pattern of action - it will depend on a concrete situation as it takes shape on the ground.'
U.S President Joe Biden said it defies logic to think Putin has taken such extensive military preparations, including putting 190,000 Russian troops on the border and moving blood supplies to those areas, for reasons other than invading Ukraine
Satellite imagery from Tuesday shows several new deployments of troops and equipment have been established in rural areas southwest of Belgorod, less than 20 kilometers to the northwest of the border with Ukraine
Satellite imagery provided by Maxar Technologies shows a close up of field hospital and troop deployment in western Belgorod, Russia, less than 20 kilometers to the northwest of the border with Ukraine
Satellite imagery provided by Maxar Technologies shows a close up of assembled vehicles at Bokov Airfield near Mazyr, Belarus, on Tuesday
Satellite imagery provided by Maxar Technologies shows armor and vehicles at a railyard in Belgorod, Russia, on Tuesday
Satellite imagery from Tuesday shows new deployments of troops and equipment that have been established in rural areas southwest of Belgorod, Russia, which is close to the Ukrainian border
Western leaders have long warned Moscow would look for cover to invade - and just such a pretext appeared to come Monday, when Putin recognized the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk separatist regions.
The Kremlin then raised the stakes further by saying that recognition extends even to the large parts of those two regions now held by Ukrainian forces, including the major Azov Sea port of Mariupol.
He added, however, that the rebels should eventually negotiate with Ukraine.
Condemnation from around the world was quick.
In Washington, lawmakers from both parties in Congress vowed continued US support for Ukraine, even as some pushed for swifter and even more severe sanctions on Russia.
Senators had been considering a sanctions package but held off as the White House pursued its strategy.
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Missiles rain down on Kiev and amphibious assault launched on Odessa as Putin invades Ukraine
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