Ukraine says Russia started launching attacks from Belarus, Crimea

ANKARA

Ukraine said Thursday that Russia had begun launching attacks into its territory from neighboring Belarus and the occupied peninsula of Crimea.

The “Russian aggression” started today around 5 a.m. (0300GMT) from the occupied territory, according to the State Border Guard Service.

"Currently, the movement of military equipment from the peninsula is being recorded across the administrative border," the service said.

In 2014 Russia took over the Ukrainian territory of Crimea, in a move called illegal by the European Union, UN General Assembly, and Turkiye.

Within the oblasts of Luhansk, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Zhytomyr – all along Ukraine’s eastern and northern borders – there were "attacks on border units, border patrols and checkpoints … with the use of artillery, heavy equipment and small arms," it added.

The news followed Russian President Vladimir Putin announcing a military intervention in Ukraine, just days after recognizing two separatist-held enclaves in eastern Ukraine. The recognition drew international condemnation and announcements of tougher sanctions on Moscow.

Putin had amassed over 100,000 Russian troops around Ukraine in recent months, but denied he had any intention of invading.