Russia expected to launch heavy military strike on Ukraine for one-year mark of invasion
Tonight, CBS News has learned that the U.S. believes Russia will mark the one-year anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine with a barrage of missile and drone strikes. CBS's Charlie Dagoda was in Ukraine one year ago when Russia launched the largest ground invasion since World War II, and he reports tonight from Kyiv. Today Ukrainian troops withstood relentless Russian bombardment in Vulodar, south of Bakhmut, which has been reduced to smoldering ruins after months of heavy battle. This is what Russia's lightning advance has come to. A grinding crawl, a far cry from a year ago, when U.
S. intelligence predicted the capital, Kyiv, would fall within 96 hours. We are on the balcony of our safe house in Kyiv at around 5 a.m. When Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a special military operation. Moments later, thunderous explosions echoed throughout the country. The Russians had launched airstrikes across the nation and ground-defensives on multiple fronts.
When Russian forces advanced toward the capital, hundreds of thousands tried to flee. We tried to stop the panic in our streets. People will be fleeing to the border, and it will be the obstacle for our armed forces to move quickly. On those streets of Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelensky made it clear he was staying put. Instead, he urged citizens to take up arms, which they did by the thousands. Hastily erected barricades and checkpoints went up everywhere, manned by jittery volunteers with guns drawn. Overnight, the lives of millions of Ukrainians change forever.
And the global repercussions of Russia's invasion now extend far beyond the battlefields of Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his gratitude to President Biden during his unannounced visit here this week for America's support and weapons. President Norah, frontline soldiers tell us they're running out of ammunition in the face of a new Russian offensive. Karly Dagoda, thank you.
russia, ukraine, anniversary, invasion, war, kyiv