The news this morning appears to indicate that an unprovoked attack has been launched against Ukraine by Russia. Putin's declaration on this is vague and typically self-serving:

In a bid to justify the attack, Putin claimed "A hostile anti-Russia is being created on our historic lands."

"We have taken the decision to conduct a special military operation," he said, in what amounted to a declaration of war. He claimed it was for the "demilitarisation and denazification" of Ukraine, echoing a theme of Kremlin propaganda, the false claim that the Kyiv government is controlled by the far right.

"We do not intend to occupy Ukraine," he said, and he had a chilling warning for other nations.

"To anyone who would consider interfering from the outside: if you do, you will face consequences greater than any you have faced in history. All relevant decisions have been taken. I hope you hear me," he said.

But the scale - even in reports by Moscow media, suggests an effort to decapitate military and (indirectly) political structures.

Military analysts said they expected that Putin will send his forces in order to capture or surround the capital, Kyiv. There were reports on Thursday evening in Russian state media that airborne troops had captured the airport in Boryspil near Kyiv.

The Russian military claimed that all of Ukraine's aviation bases were disabled in the barrage of missiles that began the Russian invasion.

A belligerent and aggressive and absolutely unnecessary act against another sovereign state that will inevitably cause huge loss of life, the destruction or damage of an independent and democratically elected polity and lasting broader damage, for Russia itself in the years to come.