Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022. On that day, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" to "demilitarize and denazify" Ukraine, and minutes later, missiles and airstrikes were launched across Ukraine, followed by a large ground invasion from multiple directions. This marked the beginning of the full-scale invasion, which was an expansion of a conflict that had started in 2014 with Russia's occupation and annexation of Crimea and fighting in eastern Ukraine. The invasion was the largest attack on a European country since World War II and led to widespread international condemnation and extensive fighting across Ukraine.