During the early hours of Thursday morning, Russian President, Vladimir Putin, announced on live television that Russia would invade Ukraine, ostensibly to “defend” the Donbas, all the while blaming the US for the attack and accusing the Biden-led US government of failing to protect the Russian security interests in the region.
The Russian attack, which involved sea, land and air operations, has already claimed the lives of civilians and both Russian and Ukrainian troops, in addition to displacing over 100,000 people. Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelensky, announced martial law shortly after the attack, urging citizens to remain calm. He did, however, make it abundantly clear that Ukraine has no intention of yielding to Russia and offered weapons to any citizen who is willing to bear arms and fight for Ukraine’s independence.