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Ukraine's president has admitted he is 'target number one' for Russian assassins in his capital, as it was claimed Chechen spec op 'hunters' have been given a list of Ukrainian officials to capture or kill. 

Volodymyr Zelensky, 44, addressed the nation on Thursday night, at the end of the first day of the Russian invasion of his country.

The former TV comedian insisted he had remained in Kyiv as he urged his fellow citizens to stay strong.

He said he was speaking from Kyiv but the elegance of the presidential palace was long gone: Zelensky, in his olive green t-shirt, appeared to be speaking from a bunker.

'I know that a lot of misinformation and rumors are being spread now,' he said. 

'In particular, it is claimed that I have left Kyiv. I remain in the capital, I am staying with my people,' he said.

Zelensky said his family also remained in the country - his wife Oleana, a 44-year-old architect and screenwriter, and their two children: daughter Aleksandra, 17, and son Kiril, nine.

'My family is not a traitor, but a citizen of Ukraine,' he said, adding that he would not reveal their location. 

'According to our information, the enemy marked me as the number one target. My family is the number two goal. 

'They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the Head of State.' 

It was claimed a squad of Chechen special forces 'hunters' has been unleashed in Ukraine to detain or kill a specific Ukrainian officials.

The kill squad was allegedly in a Ukrainian forest, with each soldier reportedly given a special 'deck of cards' with Ukrainian officials' photos and descriptions, a Moscow Telegram channel that has links to the security establishment reported.  

The Russian Investigative Committee has identified certain officials and security officers suspected of 'crimes', the report added.

There is allegedly an 'order to kill' if those on the wanted list cannot be detained, with speculation those identified by Moscow as 'Nazis' would also be on the hunted list.

Putin said a key aim of invading Ukraine was to 'deNazify' the country.

State TV in Chechnya reported that Ramzan Kadyrov, the republic's leader and a close Putin ally, had visited his forces in Ukraine.