Russia began striking military targets in Ukraine early on Thursday morning, days after recognizing the independence of the two breakaway republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. Moscow insists it is protecting the people of the Donbass from Kiev’s aggression, and that it was forced to resort to military means after Ukraine abandoned diplomacy in its civil conflict in the east.
The escalation follows years of unsuccessful talks, broken ceasefire agreements, and a standoff between Russia and the West linked to the 2014 coup that overthrew the government in Kiev.
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