Ukraine says dozens of Russian soldiers killed, jets downed

Ukraine's military command has said government forces killed "around 50 Russian occupiers" while repulsing an attack on a town on the frontline with Moscow-backed rebels.

"Shchastya is under control. 50 Russian occupiers were killed. Another Russian plane was destroyed in the Kramatorsk district. This is the sixth," the armed forces general staff said on Twitter.

Separately, authorities in Kiev also said confirmed deaths in Ukrainian military had risen to five.

The Ukrainian military has claimed to have downed five Russian planes and a helicopter in the east of the country near a rebel-held enclave.

"According to the Joint Forces Command, today, February 24, in the area of the Joint Forces operation, five planes and a helicopter of the aggressors were shot down," the army general staff said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced "special military operation" in Ukraine, in a dramatic escalation that drew scathing condemnation by the West.

Ukraine's air defence systems 'eliminated': Russia

Russia's defence ministry said it had neutralised Ukrainian military airbases and its air defence systems.

"Military infrastructure at Ukrainian army air bases has been rendered out of action," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement carried by news agencies.

Russian ground forces cross into Ukraine

Russia's ground forces have crossed into Ukraine from several directions, Ukraine's border guard service has said.

Russian tanks and other heavy equipment crossed the frontier in several northern regions, as well as from the Kremlin-annexed peninsula of Crimea in the south, the agency said.

It said one of its servicemen died in a shelling attack along the Crimean border, the first officially confirmed military death of the Russian invasion.

Ukraine asks Türkiye to close Black Sea waterways to Russia

Ukraine has asked Türkiye to close the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to Russian ships.

Under a 1936 pact, Ankara has control over the straits and can limit warship passages during wartime or if threatened.

"We are calling for the air space, Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to be closed. We have conveyed our relevant demand to the Turkish side," Ambassador Vasyl Bodnar told a news conference in Ankara.

"At the same time, we want sanctions imposed on the Russian side." 

EU, NATO, G7 to launch 'massive sanctions'

Germany has said the EU, NATO and the G7 would work to hit Russia with severe sanctions after the Kremlin launched an air and ground assault on Ukraine.

"We will launch the full package with the most massive sanctions against Russia and we will strengthen our security and our allies," Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said.

"We have not chosen this situation," she added, but "if we don't stand up to it now, we will pay an even higher price".