How Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine unfolded in the first days of the warpublished at 06:55 GMT
06:55 GMT
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Firefighters work to extinguish a fire after an air strike on an apartment building in the Kharkiv region, 24 February, 2022
Though 24 February, 2022 is seen as the start of Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine, fears of an invasion had been rising in the months before.
By 18 February, the US estimated that between 169,000 and 190,000 Russian troops had massed along Ukraine’s borders.
On 21 February, Moscow officially recognised two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine – the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic – as independent states. Russian troops were deployed there, which Vladimir Putin said were for “peacekeeping” purposes.
In the early hours of 24 February, Putin announced a “military operation” in Donbas, in a TV address, and demanded the Ukrainian military lay down its arms.
Russian forces then launched a major land, air and sea assault on Ukraine, first striking Ukraine’s military infrastructure and border guard units.
Ukrainian forces next said Russian military vehicles had crossed the border near Kharkiv in the north, Luhansk in the east, Russian-annexed Crimea in the south and from Belarus too.
Explosions were heard in multiple cities, including Kyiv and Kharkiv, as residents flocked to underground shelters.
On 25 February, Russian tanks were filmed entering the capital city Kyiv for the first time, as the city was hit by overnight blasts that injured several civilians.
By this point, tens of thousands of Ukrainians had already crossed into five countries bordering western Ukraine, attempting to flee the invasion. This figure had risen to more than half a million by 28 February.
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Civilian volunteers check their guns at a Territorial Defence unit registration office in Kyiv, 26 February 2022
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Children waiting to board an evacuation train to Poland at Lviv railway station, 28 February 2022