MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. The command center of the Ukrainian army’s operation in Donbass is practically destroyed, the leader of the Donetsk Republic, Denis Pushilin, said on the Rossiya-24 round-the-clock television news channel on Thursday.

"It can be stated that no strikes are dealt against the DPR’s territory along the whole engagement line anymore. The enemy’s main fire emplacements are being wiped out. The center of Kiev’s military operation in Donbass is practically destroyed. The liberation movement is in progress," Pushilin said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday morning said in a televised address he had made a decision to hold a special military operation in response to a message from the leaders of the Donbass republics. The Russian leader stated that Moscow had no plans for an occupation of Ukrainian territories.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that Russian forces were not attacking Ukrainian cities: its smart weapons were eliminating military infrastructure facilities. The civilian population is not in danger, the Russian Defense Ministry stressed.