Battle on for kyiv

Ukrainian forces yesterday fought off Russian troops in the capital Kyiv on the second day of an invasion that has claimed dozens of lives, as the EU approved sanctions targeting President Vladimir Putin.

Small arms fire and explosions were heard in the city's northern district of Obolonsky as what appeared to be an advance party of Russia's invasion force left a trail of destruction. Fear of bombardment forced many residents flee their homes and taking shelter in the city's subway system.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has defied Western warnings to unleash a full-scale invasion on Thursday that displaced at least 100,000 people and prompted condemnation from around the world.

Following pre-dawn blasts in Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recalled Nazi Germany's 1941 invasion and praised his people for "demonstrating heroism" as Russian forces advanced towards the capital.

The president called on Europeans with "combat experience" to take arms and defend Ukraine, saying the West was too slow to help his country.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meanwhile said Moscow wanted to "free Ukraine from oppression" and denied there had been any strikes on civilian targets.

He said Moscow was ready to talk if Ukraine's armed forces "lay down their arms", adding that "nobody intends to occupy Ukraine".

Later in the day, Putin called on the Ukrainian army to overthrow the government whose leaders he described as "terrorists" and "a gang of drug addicts and neo-Nazis".

Putin also accused "Ukrainian nationalists" of deploying heavy weapons in residential areas of major cities to provoke the Russian military, a claim that could fuel fears Moscow is creating pretexts for justifying civilian casualties.

Meanwhile China's foreign ministry yesterday said Putin, during a phone call, told his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that Russia is willing to hold high level talks with Ukraine.

Putin told Xi that the United States and Nato had long ignored Russia's legitimate security concerns, repeatedly reneged on their commitments, and continued to expand military deployment eastward, challenging Russia's strategic bottom line, according to a statement on the Chinese foreign ministry website.

Russia has demanded that Ukraine to drop its ambition to join Nato.

Ukraine said 137 people, including soldiers and civilians, have been killed since Russia began its air and ground assault on Thursday.

While the United States moved to impose sanctions on Russian elites and banks, it stressed that American forces would not fight in Ukraine. Nato also said it would not send forces to Ukraine.

Among the highest-profile strategic developments on Thursday, Ukraine said Russian forces had seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant -- prompting concern from international nuclear watchdogs. Russia said Thursday it had destroyed over 70 Ukrainian military targets, including 11 airfields.

Western intelligence confirmed Moscow had established "complete air superiority" over Ukraine.

Weeks of diplomacy failed to deter Putin, who massed over 150,000 troops on Ukraine's borders.

Western allies had initially imposed some sanctions on Russia in an effort to stop Putin from invading, then followed through on Thursday with vows to heavily punish Russia economically.

US President Joe Biden announced export controls against Russia, alongside sanctions on Russian elites he called "corrupt billionaires", and banks.

The EU also moved to impose "massive" sanctions on Russia's energy and finance sectors on Thursday. EU officials yesterday said the bloc had agreed go  even further by freezing European assets linked to Putin and Lavrov personally.

There was also a raft of sanctions in the cultural and sporting worlds, with UEFA deciding that Paris will host this season's Champions League final instead of Saint Petersburg. Formula One also said it was cancelling the Russian Grand Prix while remaining World Cup skiing events were scrapped by the sport's governing body FIS.