The full-scale invasion we had hoped against hope wouldn't come is here.
Late last night, following a final appeal by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Russian forces launched what Vladimir Putin called a “special military operation.”
At the United Nations, Ukraine's UN ambassador addressed his Russian counterpart.
Long-range missile launches from Russia began almost immediately. They systematically targeted pre-selected targets of military value, including airports.
Graphic footage posted online appears to show the fireball from an exploding cruise missile engulf an unidentified pedestrian. Another clip shows multiple destroyed military vehicles burning on a county road. The burned, blackened body of a soldier lies sprawled on the concrete.
Viewer discretion is highly advised.
The death toll at this hour is unclear.
Moscow says it hasn't targeted city centers. We do know that airborne forces are attempting to take control of the country's largest airport Kyiv. Meanwhile, amphibious landings have taken place in Odessa and Mariupol. Ground forces have moved in from Belarus, Russia and Crimea.
The plan of attack is similar to what our own Paul Crespo described in an earlier piece:
Three of the most likely scenarios include an attack on the capital Kyiv to carry out regime change in Ukraine using the 30,000 Russian troops currently in Belarus. This offensive could be combined with a separate attack from pro-Russian rebel-controlled Donbas region in the East.
This scenario could include Russian troops advancing to and from Crimea to create a land bridge along Ukraine's southeast coast.
Regardless, expect any Russian assault to include multiple axes of advance simultaneously, along with devastating cyber attacks, disinformation warfare and artillery, rocket and missile strikes.
Any Russian attack will be brutal, bloody and destructive.
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Well, the world can pretty well write off Ukraine, Russia now owns it, and short of going to war with them, they will keep it. Putin knows he won’t get any push back from Biden because all our senile “president” knows to do is to issue meaningless executive orders. This situation should not come as a surprise to anyone. It should prove to be interesting over these next days to see what the nations of the west actually do to Russia.