Russian forces began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine before dawn, with missile and air strikes on Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and military installations, and ground columns advancing from Belarus, Russia and occupied Crimea.
President Volodymyr Zelensky declared martial law and general mobilisation and remained in Kyiv as an assault on the capital was repulsed over the following weeks. Millions of Ukrainians left for Poland, Romania, Moldova and beyond in Europe's largest displacement since the Second World War.
Western governments imposed unprecedented sanctions, including the freezing of Russian central bank reserves, and began sustained military assistance to Kyiv. Energy and grain markets were disrupted worldwide.
