LONDON — European stocks are expected to open sharply lower on Thursday after reports that Russia had begun an attack on Ukraine, tipping a longstanding diplomatic crisis into a military conflict.

United Kingdom’s FTSEThe index will open lower than 7,303 at 7.303 in Germany, according to the forecast. DAX 526 points lower at 14,092, France’s CAC 40 down 229 points at 6,551 and Italy’s FTSE MIBData from IG shows that the 25017 mark is 921 less than it was at 25017

On Thursday, global markets will be shaken by the announcement that Russia attacked Ukraine and that this attack appears more severe than anticipated.

Journalists and officials from the government in four Ukrainian cities reported multiple explosions on Thursday morning, local time. This undermines Russian President Vladimir Putin’s assertion that Russia is launching an operation to limit its military reach to the east.

Starting about two hours before dawn on Thursday, explosions were felt in and around the cities of Kyiv, Odessa, Kharkiv and Mariupol. According to reports the explosions are still ongoing. Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, stated in a statement, that there was a full-scale invasion of his country.

American President Joe Biden strongly condemned the attack. In a statement, he stated that Russia will be held responsible. This was before he spoke to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zeleskyy. To discuss the most recent developments, an emergency meeting of European Union members will be held on Thursday.

Earnings are from AB InBev. Axa. Bouygues. Safran. Saint-Gobain. Mercedes-Benz. Deutsche Telekom. Telefonica. Anglo American. BAE systems. WPP. Rolls-Royce. Lloyds Banking Group. The data side, the February French Consumer Confidence figures are due.

This market report was contributed by Christine Wilkie, CNBC.