Air raid sirens rang out in Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, early Thursday following the announcement of Russian military operation in eastern part of the country.

READ MORE: As the U.N. Security Council held a late-night emergency session in a bid to avert war, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a military operation in eastern Ukraine early Thursday, saying he was acting in response to threats from Ukraine and warning other countries not to intervene.

He added in the televised address that those who oppose the Russian action in the Donbas region will face “consequences they have never seen.”

Around the same time, several rumbling explosions were heard in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, away from the city center. Officials told VOA that two airports in Kyiv were being targeted in a drone attack, and that some of the explosions heard were rockets being fired at the drones by Ukrainian forces. An official said Russia was possibly targeting air-defense systems to clear the way for later airstrikes.

U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement that the people of Ukraine were suffering “an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces.”

“President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering,” Biden said. “Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way. The world will hold Russia accountable.”

Biden said that after speaking with G-7 leaders Thursday morning, he will announce “the further consequences the United States and our Allies and partners will impose on Russia for this needless act of aggression against Ukraine and global peace and security.”

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