Vladimir Putin

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.

Quoting the Russian state news agency TASS, Xinhua news agency reported that the operation has begun. "We are hearing reports - some unconfirmed - of explosions in other parts of the Ukraine. Loud bangs in the capital Kyiv as well as Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region," BBC news reported. But there have also been reports on social media of explosions in Ukraine.

Reprimanding Moscow, Guterres said, "The decision of the Russian Federation to recognise the so-called 'independence' of Donetsk and Luhansk regions -- and the follow-up -- are violations of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and inconsistent with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations."

Following Moscow's recognition of the two "republics" in east Ukraine's Donbas, the US announced a package of restrictions targeting Russia's financial sector, Xinhua news agency reported. The statement said the sanctions are in line with Washington's ongoing attempts to "change Russia's course".

In a joint press conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Washington, Blinken said: "His (Putin) plan all along has been to invade Ukraine; to control Ukraine and its people; to destroy Ukraine's democracy, which offers a stark contrast to the autocracy that he leads; to reclaim Ukraine as a part of Russia. "That's why this is the greatest threat to security in Europe since World War II."

Addressing reporters late Tuesday, Psaki did not explicitly rule out a meeting in the future but said Biden would not meet Putin unless Russia de-escalates the situation in Ukraine by pulling back troops. The Press Secretary's remarks come after Biden Biden announced earlier on Tuesday the first round of tougher sanctions against Russian banks, oligarchs, and others, with plans to escalate sanctions if Moscow advances its invasion.

“The situation in Ukraine is the result of a complex chain of circumstances over the last thirty years. Most countries, such as India and France, which is very active, are seeking a diplomatic solution… In the case of Ukraine, a lot of it derives from the post-Soviet politics, the expansion of NATO, the dynamics between Russia and Europe, and Russia and the West broadly,” Minister Jaishankar said in an interview to French newspaper Le Figaro. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a decree which recognized the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts (provinces) in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine as independent People’s Republics. Minsk II (2015) followed the Minsk I agreement which was signed in September 2014 but failed to reinstate peace. Here're key highlights of Minsk I&II agreements (together known as Minsk Protocol).

The secretary-general is "greatly concerned" by the decision by the Russian Federation related to the status of certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine, Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN chief, said on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported. Through a statement attributable to Dujarric, the UN chief called for "peaceful settlement" of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

"President Biden will soon issue an Executive Order (EO) that will prohibit new investment, trade, and financing by US persons to, from, or in the so-called DNR and LNR regions of Ukraine," Psaki said in the statement, using the Russian abbreviation of the "Donetsk People's Republic" and the "Lugansk People's Republic," two self-declared republics founded by anti-government militia groups in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.