Officials are only starting to grasp the devastation caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has left dozens dead.
The Ukrainian Presidency has said that more than 40 soldiers were killed and a few dozen more were injured during the first few hours of the invasion, CNN reported.
Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser in the President's Office, said that in addition to the military casualties, "as far as I know, at the moment there are a few civilian deaths -- up to ten," the outlet added.
As widespread attacks are reported across Ukraine, which is about the same size as Texas, officials expect the death toll to grow.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called it a "full-scale" invasion of the country.
"No, the Ukrainian defense has not collapsed. Ukrainian army took the fight. Ukraine stands with both feet on the ground & continues to defend itself," Kuleba wrote on Twitter. "Putin attacked, but no one is running away. Army, diplomats, everyone is working. Ukraine fights. Ukraine will defend itself. Ukraine will win."
The first explosions were heard around 5 a.m. Thursday and airstrikes have since occurred on military bases and multiple cities, including Kharkiv, Kramatorsk and the capital of Kyiv, according to the Associated Press.
A U.S. defense official estimated that more than 100 missiles were fired at Ukraine on Wednesday night alone, NPR reported. By midday Thursday, Russian troops had seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, according to CNN.