'Stop the war': Ukrainian envoy appeals to UN members

The Ukrainian ambassador to the United Nations has appealed to its members to "stop the war" at an emergency meeting of the Security Council late on Wednesday (local time). 

"It is the responsibility of this body to stop the war. So I call on every one of you to do everything possible to stop the war," Ukrainian envoy Sergiy Kyslytsya was quoted as saying by CNN during the meeting of the security council.

Also read: Russia-Ukraine: What to know as explosions boom over Ukraine

At an emergency meeting, Kyslytsya said it was "too late" for de-escalation and urged other countries to help stop the conflict. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has launched a full-scale invasion, announced Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, and added that Ukrainian cities are under strikes. 

"Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Peaceful Ukrainian cities are under strikes. This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend itself and will win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time to act is now," Kuleba tweeted.

This tweet comes soon after Putin announced a special "military operation" to protect Donbas in eastern Ukraine. 

Also read: Biden condemns Russia's 'unprovoked, unjustified attack' on Ukraine

Defending Russia's decision to take military action in the Donbas region, the Russian envoy to the UN Vasily Alekseevich Nebenzya said "the root of today's crisis around Ukraine is the actions of Ukraine itself." 

"The root of today's crisis around Ukraine is the actions of Ukraine itself, who for many years were sabotaging its obligations under the (Minsk agreement)," said Nebenzya. 

Nebenzya said that the Russian operation is aimed to protect residents in eastern Ukraine. 

Condemning Russia's "unprovoked and unjustified attack on Ukraine", US President Joe Biden said that the premeditated war will bring a catastrophic loss of life. 

"The prayers of the entire world are with the people of Ukraine tonight as they suffer an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces. President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering," Biden said in a White House statement. 

Asserting that the US and its allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way, Biden said that Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring.