The Russian Ministry of Defense on Thursday reported that the air defense systems and the military infrastructure of Ukrainian Air Force bases were destroyed, hours after the military operation began.

Moscow.- It further noted that Ukrainian border guard units did not put up resistance to Russian military forces, which moved into the Donbass region in response to a support request by the heads of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), recognized by Moscow, to face Kiev’s aggression.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced this Thursday that he decided to launch a special military operation at the request of the autonomous republics of Donbass and stressed that Moscow has no plans to occupy Ukrainian territories.

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, its military forces do not attack Ukrainian cities but use high-precision weapons to disable Ukraine’s military infrastructure, so the civilian population is not in danger. (PL)