Putin’s blitz marks the next phase in Ukraine’s war

Since the attack on the Kerch bridge in Crimea, the world has been awaiting Putin’s answer. It came this morning in the form of Russian missiles fired over Ukrainian cities. To add to this, Belarusian media is also reporting the deployment of Belarusian troops to the conflict for the first time. Of the 83 Russian missiles fired into the country, 43 have been intercepted by Ukraine’s air defence system (which has also intercepted dozens of Iranian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones) but Kyiv has been hit. Lviv, Dnipro, Kharkiv and Odesa have also been targeted – large and small cities are under attack. The number of dead and wounded is unknown. All schools in Ukraine have been instructed to switch to remote learning.

Headlines have understandably focused on the bombing in Kyiv but the main targets seem to be energy facilities throughout the country.