MISSILE SHELL HITS CYCLIST IN UKRAINE

It came after the Russian strongman gave an extraordinary address to the Russian nation - broadcast in the early hours during a UN meeting aimed at avoiding war - in which he declared a 'special military operation' to 'de-militarise' and 'de-Nazify' Ukraine in what amounted to a outright declaration of war. The video appeared to have been pre-recorded, around the same time as Putin's Monday address recognising Donbass as independent.

Putin also issued a chilling warning to any country thinking of coming to Ukraine's aid, vowing 'consequences greater than any you have faced in history'. 'I hope I have been heard,' he said.

The mood on the ground in Ukraine was mixed. Some showed incredible resolve - heading to work via train and road even as the bombs dropped. Elderly women in the city of Kharkiv, under heavy attack, gathered in the street to pray. But for others, the sight of Russian attack was too much. Highways out of Kiev clogged with cars as people fled, while refugees began crossing the borders into Poland and Slovakia.

The invasion - a naked attempt to redraw the map of Europe by force - marks the most concerted attempt to up-end world order since the end of the Cold War, and risks sparking the bloodiest conflict in Europe since the end of the Second World War.

Underlining the gravity of the moment, Ukrainian Interior Ministry advisor Anton Herashchenko said: 'Starting today, the world has a new geopolitical reality. Either Ukraine and the world will stop the new Hitler now, or there will be a Third World War.'

Western leaders lined up to condemn Russia's actions in the early hours, with security councils convened the world over to mount a response. Heavy sanctions are expected to follow, along with more shipments of military equipment to Ukraine - provided they can find a route in.

But NATO and the US have made it clear that no troops will be sent, leaving Ukraine's military - far the inferior of Russia - to hold off the assault alone. Few expect it to emerge victorious from what is almost certain to be a prolonged, bloody, and vicious war.

NATO is expected to focus its efforts on stopping the war from spilling over into neighbouring countries. Poland, a member of the alliance, shares an extensive land border with Ukraine. The Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, also NATO members - will now fear a Russian assault.

The alliance began moving its forces early Thursday, putting 100 warplanes on high alert in Europe whole moving more troops to the Baltics.

Moldova, where some Russian ground troops are already based, is also at risk of falling to Putin. From there, he could strike out at Romania - another former Soviet state.

Unconfirmed reports said that Russian forces had destroyed or rendered unusable the Ukrainian navy, and struck Boryspil Airport in Kiev. Access to the Black Sea and Azov Sea was cut off.

President Joe Biden will address the nation at noon on Thursday, and on Wednesday night he condemned Russia's 'unprovoked and unjustified attack.' He was speaking to Ukraine's president.

Biden said in a statement: 'President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering.

'Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way. The world will hold Russia accountable.'

Biden said he will be monitoring the situation from Washington, DC, and will continue to get regular updates from his national security team.

Putin justified it all in a televised address, asserting that the attack was needed to protect civilians in eastern Ukraine - a false claim the U.S. had predicted he would make as a pretext for an invasion.

He accused the U.S. and its allies of ignoring Russia's demands to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and for security guarantees. He also claimed that Russia does not intend to occupy Ukraine but will move to 'demilitarize' it and bring those who committed crimes to justice.

Biden in a written statement condemned the 'unprovoked and unjustified attack,' and he promised that the U.S. and its allies would 'hold Russia accountable.' The president said he planned to speak to Americans on Thursday after a meeting of the Group of Seven leaders. More sanctions against Russia were expected to be announced Thursday.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba described the assault as a 'full-scale invasion' and said Ukraine will 'defend itself and will win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time to act is now.'

In the capital, Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko advised residents to stay home unless they are involved in critical work and urged them to prepare go-bags with necessities and documents if they need to evacuate. An Associated Press photographer in Mariupol reported hearing explosions and seeing dozens of people with suitcases heading for their cars to leave the city.

'We are facing a war and horror. What could be worse?' 64-year-old Liudmila Gireyeva said in Kyiv. She planned to head to the western city of Lviv and then to try to move to Poland to join her daughter. Putin 'will be damned by history, and Ukrainians are damning him.'

The Russian claims about knocking out Ukrainian air defenses and Ukrainian claims to have shot down several Russian aircraft could not immediately be verified. The Ukrainian air defense system and air force date back to the Soviet era and are dwarfed by Russia's massive air power and its inventory of precision weapons.

The Russian Defense Ministry said it was not targeting cities, but using precision weapons and claimed that 'there is no threat to civilian population.'

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister, said on Facebook that the Russian military had launched missile strikes on Ukrainian military command facilities, air bases and military depots in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Dnipro.

Biden announced he will join G7 counterparts on Thursday morning, and will address the country later on Thursday to 'announce the further consequences the United States and its Allies and partners will impose on Russia.'

'We will also coordinate with our NATO Allies to ensure a strong, united response that deters any aggression against the Alliance. Tonight, Jill and I are praying for the brave and proud people of Ukraine,' the statement added.

Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, tweeted early on Thursday: 'I am appalled by the horrific events in Ukraine and I have spoken to President Zelenskyy to discuss next steps. President Putin has chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction by launching this unprovoked attack on Ukraine.

'The UK and our allies will respond decisively.'

Putin in his speech on Thursday told other countries not to get involved.

'To anyone who would consider interfering from the outside - if you do, you will face consequences greater than any you have faced in history,' he said in the television broadcast around 6am Moscow time.

The consequences of the conflict and resulting sanctions on Russia could reverberate throughout the world, upending geopolitical dynamics in Europe as well as affecting energy supplies in Europe and jolting global financial markets.