How the Ukraine invasion unfolded minute-by-minute: Russian shells rain down on Mariupol at 3.30am, Putin declares war two hours later and then all hell breaks loose across nation and capital Kiev
The first sign an invasion was imminent came at just before 12am Ukrainian time when Moscow-backed rebels issued a request for military assistance from Russia. Moments later, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a defiant message to the nation, vowing his countrymen would 'fight back' in the event of an invasion, telling Moscow: 'When you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs.' A frenzied string of diplomatic manoeuvres, including an emergency UN Security Council meeting in New York, were not enough to dissuade Putin, who declared a 'special military operation' at around 3am Ukraine time.