Explosions heard across Ukraine as Russia launches military attack

Putin warns any interference from other countries will result in 'consequences they have never seen'
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced a military operation in Ukraine and warned other countries that any attempt to interfere with the Russian action would lead to "consequences they have never seen."

He said the attack was needed to protect civilians in Eastern Ukraine — a claim the U.S. had predicted he would falsely make to justify an invasion.

In a televised address, Putin accused the U.S. and its allies of ignoring Russia's demand to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and offer Moscow security guarantees. He said Russia's goal was not to occupy Ukraine.

As Putin spoke before dawn, explosions were heard in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and other cities across Ukraine.

The Ukrainska Pravda news website cited a Ukrainian interior ministry official as saying that Ukrainian military command centers in the cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv were attacked by missile strikes.
Putin warns other countries not to interfere
A full-blown Russian invasion could cause massive casualties and topple Ukraine's democratically elected government. And the consequences of the conflict and resulting sanctions levied on Russia could reverberate throughout the world, affecting energy supplies in Europe, jolting global financial markets and threatening the post-Cold War balance on the continent.

As he unleashed the military action, Putin issued a stark warning to other countries not to meddle.

"I have a few words for those who could feel tempted to interfere with ongoing developments: whoever tries to impede us, let alone create threats for our country and its people must know that the Russian response will be immediate and lead to the consequences you have never seen in history," he said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the attack and warned the action would be met with "severe consequences."

In a written statement, he said, "Canada calls on Russia to immediately cease all hostile and provocative actions against Ukraine and withdraw all military and proxy forces from the country. Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected and the Ukrainian people must be free to determine their own future."