The first day ( THE TALE ) of what is incontrovertibly a war ends in Ukraine, with Russian forces unleashing a storm of missiles, rockets and heavy artillery against Ukrainian targets near or within the country's main cities after weeks of escalation. .
Dozens of bombs exploded, at least one hundred missiles and an unspecified number of dead and wounded is the balance of a day that will remain in history, which began at 6 in the morning, 4 in Italy, when Russian President Vladimir Putin threw off his mask, putting on permanently diplomacy aside and striking the hour of arms: the Russian army has crossed the borders of Ukraine.
Such a belligerent Putin has not been seen for some time, indeed perhaps it has never been seen before: the goal is to "demilitarize and denazify Ukraine", he said, and "anyone who tries to create obstacles and interfere should know that Russia will respond with consequences never seen before. We are prepared for anything ".
THE ASSAULT ON EARTH - This is how an attack on several fronts starts: in the north the Russian tanks departed from Belarus have made their way to Kiev, which is only 150 km from the border, taking control of the disused Chernobyl nuclear power plant, advancing as far as to conquer the Antonov port of Hostomel, about 10 kilometers from the capital, now directly threatened by Russian firepower. Western allies estimate that Kiev could fall to Russian forces "within hours," according to Bloomberg.
On the eastern front, the Russians advanced towards Kharkiv, with tanks entering nearby Sumy, where the most violent fighting was reported. The separatist militias of Lugansk are also advancing on this front which, "thanks to the support of the Russian artillery", have conquered Shchastia and Stanytsia Luhanska, well beyond the line of contact.
To the south, the Donetsk militias advanced with some tanks towards the port of Mariupol, while the Russian forces stationed in the Crimea, assisted by the firepower of the ships in the Black Sea, broke through the Ukrainian defensive lines in Kherson, taking control of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station.
In Kiev there is panic: thousands of people gather in the subway, just as many crowd in front of the petrol stations, the queues to get out of the city are endless. The displaced people try to leave the country in the only possible ways: from Poland or Moldova.
President Volodymyr Zelensky imposes martial law as the Moscow Stock Exchange plunges to over 30%. The tsar does not give up and in the evening, in a new video in which he is shown meeting the delegation of the business world, he reiterates that "the necessary has been done". For sanctions, he says, Moscow was already prepared and still remains "part of the global economy", which therefore does not want to damage.
THE REACTIONS - The reaction of the West is very harsh: after meeting the National Security Council at the White House, American President Joe Biden appears on TV, talks about the complete breakdown of relations with Moscow and illustrates the new measures decided against Russia. Banks are mainly affected: "It is a war that has been premeditated for months", he said, Putin will pay the consequences, he will become a "pariah on the international scene".
Italian Prime Minister Draghi, who will report to Parliament tomorrow and Tuesday, described dialogue with Moscow as "impossible" at this time, reiterating Italy's "full solidarity with Ukraine" and anticipating the launch of a "tough package of sanctions" part of the EU. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for a halt "diplomatically, politically, economically and - possibly - militarily - this horrible and barbaric adventure of the dictator Putin". According to the German Olaf Scholz "there is no justification, this is Putin's war" and French President Emmanuel Macron has advocated an "immediate end" to Russian operations.
A harsh reaction also came from the EU. European Commission President von der Leyen has announced the launch of "a package of massive and targeted sanctions" that "will have a very heavy impact on the Russian economy and will suppress Russia's growth, erode its industrial base. many capitals leave the country. We will limit Moscow's access to key technologies. At stake are the stability of Europe and the international world order, Putin will have to explain these sanctions to his citizens, I know that the Russian people did not want this war".
The Alliance reiterated that "the allied countries will never accept illegal recognition" from Moscow, approving "a further deployment of forces" to the East and increasing "the readiness of the contingents". However, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg assured that "there are no NATO troops in Ukraine and we have neither plans nor intentions to deploy them".
China (it is no coincidence that the operations started right at the end of the Beijing Olympics) are with Putin, which rejects "the preconceived use of words" regarding the term "invasion" and Belarus, with President Aljaksandr Lukashenko who did not excluding the participation of Minsk troops in Russian military operations "if necessary".
(Unioneonline / D)