Ukraine invasion: Russian troops take control of air base near Kyiv

Russian airborne troops have taken control of an air base, which is about 40km away from the centre of Kyiv after launching an invasion of Ukraine in the early hours of Thursday.

The troops landed in the early hours of the morning, CNN reports, as several Ukrainian cities were hit by missiles.

Russian troops crossed the border into Ukraine on different fronts in what appears to be an attempt to take control of the whole country and not just Ukraine's separatist regions in the east.

Missiles and explosions have been reported on military infrastructure in the vicinity of major cities. Ukrainian officials have reported several civilian casualties from the attacks. Meanwhile, the Ukranian military said it killed about 50 Russian occupiers and shot down at least six Russian aircraft.

According to BBC, Russia said it found little resistance and claimed Ukranian forces abandoned their positions and weapons.

Debris from a Russian missile (Photo: Reddit)

Huge traffic jams have built up in several parts of Kyiv, as residents are attempting to flee the city after Ukraine closed its airspace to civilian flights. Elsewhere, residents are seeking shelter in stations - and queues have formed for buses, cashpoints and petrol stations.

According to The Kyiv Independent, Belarus launched four ballistic missiles targeting western Ukraine. Russian troops have used Belarus as a spring board to invade Ukraine from the north. Russian troops also landed on Ukraine's coast on the Black Sea in the south.

Russia's full-scale invasion has been condemned by the western world and EU leaders are meeting tonight to agree on a raft of sanctions in response to the aggression.

Meanwhile, the prime minister of the Baltic republic of Estonia, bordering Russia, said a number of NATO allies that share borders with Russia have agreed to launch consultations under NATO's Article 4 protocol which calls on members to intervene if any one member is attacked.

Moldova, which borders Ukraine, declared a state of emergency and declared itself ready to help the Ukrainians, while Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said he was signing a state of emergency to be approved by parliament.

The US, EU, UK and Japan had imposed a first raft of sanctions against Russians and Russian banks when Russia recognised Ukraine's eastern regions as independent.