MI6 chief Richard Moore has warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that “no amount of disinformation” will be able to disguise the fact his attack on Ukraine was “unprovoked and long-planned”, as British intelligence had exposed his plot well in advance.
The head of the UK’s secret intelligence service said experts had worked with their counterparts in the US to reveal Mr Putin's plans during the build-up to his invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian leader’s determination to assassinate Ukrainian politicians and stage “false-flag” operations to justify an invasion had been laid bare for the world to see, Mr Moore said.
On Thursday, Russia declared war on Ukraine, after its leaders had for months denied that an invasion was being planned.
Ben Wallace, the UK’s Defence Secretary, said on Friday the Russian army had failed to make progress on any of its objectives on day one of the invasion, and is “behind its hopeful timetable”.
He also claimed Russia had suffered heavy casualties in the first day of the military operation, losing 450 personnel.
“Glory to Ukraine!” Mr Moore tweeted. “US and UK intelligence communities uncovered Putin’s plans for Ukraine.
“We exposed his attempts to engineer ‘false flag’, fake attacks to justify his invasion. We revealed his plans to assassinate Ukrainian leaders and senior officials.
“This attack was long planned, unprovoked, cruel aggression. No amount of Russian disinformation will now disguise that fact from the international community.”
Ukraine has said more than 60 Russian-battalion tactical groups were on Ukrainian territory on the first day of the invasion.
Britain’s Ministry of Defence said on Thursday night that there were continuing clashes between Ukrainian forces and Russian soldiers along the Line of Contact in Donbas, in eastern Ukraine.
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A Ukrainian soldier walks past the shell of a burnt military vehicle, on a street in Kiev. AP -
A screengrab from CCTV footage shows a missile hitting a residential building in Kiev. Reuters -
A man inspects a broken window, after shelling carried out by Russian troops in the Ukrainian capital. Reuters -
Ukrainian soldiers take positions outside a military centre as two cars burn on a street in Kiev. AP -
Medical specialists transport a woman, who was wounded in the shelling of an apartment building, to an ambulance, as her husband looks on. Reuters -
A woman outside her apartment building after it was damaged by a rocket, in Kiev. AP -
A Ukrainian police officer detains a driver on a street in Kiev. AP -
A soldier's helmet with a bullet hole on a street in the Ukrainian capital. AP -
Ukrainian soldiers walk by a damaged vehicle, at the site of fighting with Russian troops, in Kiev. Reuters -
Ukrainian policemen move parrots to safety after a high-rise apartment block was damaged by shelling in Kiev. EPA -
A screengrab from a video shows rescue workers carrying a person at the site of a damaged multi-storey residential building, south-west of the Ukrainian capital. Reuters -
A building damaged by shelling carried out by Russian troops in Kiev. EPA -
Helga Tarasova comforts her daughter Kira Shapovalova as they wait in an underground shelter during a bombing alert in Kiev. AFP -
A man walks past a building damaged by a rocket attack in the Ukrainian capital. AP -
Emergency services workers near an apartment building damaged by shelling in Kiev. Reuters -
Ukrainian soldiers collect unexploded shells in the capital. AFP -
An apartment building damaged by shelling in Kiev. Reuters -
Debris of a burnt military truck on a street in Kiev. AP -
Natali Sevriukova stands next to her home after a rocket attack in Kiev, Ukraine. AP -
People on foot and in cars move to cross from Ukraine to Poland at the Korczowa-Krakovets border crossing following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. AFP -
Servicemen from the Ukrainian National Guard in central Kiev. Reuters -
Ukrainian soldiers in downtown Kiev after Russian troops reached the outskirts of the capital. AP Photo -
Police officers detain demonstrators in St. Petersburg, Russia. Hundreds of people gathered in Moscow and St. Petersburg on Thursday, protesting against Russia's attack on Ukraine. Similar protests took place in other Russian cities, and activists were also arrested. AP Photo -
Hungarian troops in Vasarosnameny, close to the border with Ukraine, prepare to help refugees. AP Photo -
Wrecked Russian army rocket launchers in Kharkiv, Ukraine. Reuters -
The aftermath of a rocket attack in Kiev. AP Photo -
A US Air Force jet refuels over Poland. Reuters -
Devastation after shelling in Ukraine's Luhansk enclave. Reuters -
The Royal Welsh Battlegroup from the UK makes its way to Estonia. Reuters -
Firefighters tackle a blaze in a building in Kiev. AFP -
The wreckage of an unidentified aircraft in a residential area in Kiev. Reuters -
Smoke rises near the Ukrainian Defence Ministry in Kiev. Reuters -
Russian military helicopters fly over the Ukrainian capital. AP -
An anxious wait to board a train to leave Kiev as the attack loomed. AP Photo -
Ukrainian servicemen on tanks in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine. AP Photo -
Ukraine troops said this destroyed armoured vehicle outside Kharkiv belonged to the Russian army. Reuters -
Rescuers at the crash site after a Ukraine armed forces Antonov aircraft was shot down in Kiev, according to the Ukrainian authorities. Reuters -
Ukrainian tanks that aim to repel an attack by the Russian military in the Luhansk enclave of Ukraine. AFP -
A Ukrainian State Border Guard Service base is ablaze after heavy shelling near Kiev. Reuters -
Damaged radar at a Ukrainian military plant outside Mariupol. Officials in Kiev say Russian troops have rolled into the country from the north, east and south. AP Photo -
Firefighters attend a blaze after bombing in the eastern Ukrainian town of Chuguiv, as Russian armed forces appeared to be bombarding Ukraine from several directions. AFP -
A traffic jam in Kiev, with many Ukrainians leaving their capital after Russian troops entered. EPA -
The Border Service of Ukraine released CCTV footage purporting to show Russian military vehicles passing a checkpoint to drive into Crimea. AP -
A man picks up fragments of military materiel on the street after an apparent Russian strike in Kharkiv, Ukraine. AP -
Workers load the debris of a rocket on to a lorry in the aftermath of Russian shelling in Kiev. AP -
Emergency staff treat an injured man after bombing in Chuguiv. AFP -
An American woman in distress after crossing the border to flee the violence in Ukraine, in Medyka, Poland. Reuters -
People take shelter in a Kiev subway station, after Russian President Vladimir Putin authorised a military operation in eastern Ukraine. Reuters -
People in a rush near Kiev-Pasazhyrskyi railway station in the Ukrainian capital. AFP -
A Flightradar24.com screengrab shows a dearth of civilian aircraft in Ukrainian airspace after the Russian invasion. AP -
The aftermath of bombing in Chuguiv. AFP -
A Ukrainian rocket launcher vehicle prepares for action. Reuters -
Cars are driven across a field to leave the city of Kharkiv. Reuters -
People chant, carry placards and wave Ukrainian flags as they gather in Sydney, to demonstrate against Russian attacks on its neighbour. AP -
People with many of their belongings packed take shelter in a Metro station in Kiev. AFP -
Emergency services at the scene of an explosion at a military unit building in Kiev. EPA -
A Kiev resident sweeps up debris after Russian shelling. AP -
The first 40 soldiers of the 173rd US Army Airborne Brigade step off a military plane in Latvia. EPA -
More damage from shelling in Kiev. AP -
People wait at a bus station to travel to western parts of Ukraine, after violence in the east. Reuters -
A woman carries her cats in a quest for a safe haven. AFP -
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds an urgent government meeting in Kiev to discuss the next step. AFP -
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and foreign policy chief Josep Borrell give a joint statement in Brussels, updating the press about the situation in Ukraine. EPA -
People survey the damage after bombing in Chuguiv. AFP -
A building on fire in Chuguiv. AFP
Officials believe there had been “no breakthrough by Russian forces” trying to make their way deeper into Ukrainian territory. The ministry took to Twitter as well to make its information known.
Ukraine forces were resisting the Russian offence and it was unlikely that Russia had achieved its first-day objectives.
The ministry said a fleet of Russian warships had entered Ukrainian waters in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.
Russia has suspended civilian shipping in the Sea of Azov, “likely in preparation for a full blockade”.
“We have seen no evidence to corroborate reporting of an amphibious landing in Odessa,” the ministry said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson praised the resistance the Ukrainian troops were showing during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday morning.
Their conversation came after Mr Zelenskyy publicly rebuked Nato and European leaders for being “afraid” to admit Ukraine to the military alliance.
Britain, the US and the EU have imposed heavy sanctions on Russia in response to the invasion. But Kiev wants guarantees that it will be allowed to join Nato.
“Today, I asked the 27 leaders of Europe whether Ukraine will be in Nato. I asked directly. Everyone is afraid, does not answer.”
Mr Zelenskyy said Ukraine "needs the support of partners more than ever", adding: "We demand effective counteraction to the Russian Federation. Sanctions must be further strengthened."
Mr Johnson assured Mr Zelenskyy that "the world is united in its horror at what Putin is doing" and praised the "bravery and heroism of the Ukrainian people", No 10 said.
"The Prime Minister committed to provide further UK support to Ukraine in the coming days as the people of Ukraine and the world continue to demonstrate that Putin cannot act with impunity," a statement added.
Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said just before 4am on Friday that "horrific rocket strikes" had hit Kiev in an attack he compared to the city's 1941 shelling by Nazi Germany.
Mr Zelenskyy said "subversive groups" were encroaching on the capital, as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Kiev "could well be under siege".
US officials believe the action is an attempt by Mr Putin to dismantle Ukraine's government and replace it with his own puppet regime.
Speaking on Friday morning, Britain’s defence chief suggested the invasion had not gone as planned for the Russians on their first day.
“The Russian army has failed to deliver on day one its main objective,” Mr Wallace told Sky News.
However, Russia has captured key sites, including the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. No staff were wounded in the capture.
Mr Wallace said he would expect Mr Putin to be “held to account” if he committed a war crime.
“If President Putin commits a war crime, then, just as I do if I were to commit a war crime, I should expect to be held to account,” he said.
Asked if Mr Putin’s actions already constituted a war crime, he said: “I’m not, I’m afraid, an international lawyer. I couldn’t tell you the difference between breaking international law insofar as directing your forces to invade another country, versus a war crime — for example, things like genocide, and indeed, you know, torture, etc.
“I wouldn’t want to speculate [on] the differences. What I would say is he has clearly broken international law, he is occupying or trying to occupy a sovereign country [that] made one mistake in his eyes. Their mistake in his eyes was not to choose the Kremlin as a way for their future. And that’s all they have done.”
Mr Blinken has warned President Putin may not stop at Ukraine and could send troops into Poland.
Mr Blinken’s comments came after a report suggested Russia had massed troops and military equipment on the Belarusian-Polish border
“Is it a possibility that Putin goes beyond Ukraine? Sure, it is a possibility,” Blinken told ABC News host David Muir.
Jack Detsch, a Pentagon and national security correspondent at Foreign Policy magazine, described how Russia had “assembled troops, armour, artillery and more than 50 heavy equipment transporters at a training area in Brest”, in Belarus, near the Polish border.
He said Mr Putin had “also added more equipment at a nearby rail yard in Belarus”.
