Russian forces are closing in on Kiev, and cities and towns are seeing significant destruction as Moscow continues to bombard Ukraine. Shortly before 6 a.m. on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Lviv, CNN teams heard several explosions on the ground.
Russia may target foreign weapons: Russia has threatened to open fire on arms shipments to Ukraine, saying foreign arms convoys could be considered “legitimate targets.” The warning, issued by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, raises the risk of a direct confrontation between Moscow and the NATO country.
US rushes with military aid: The warning came after the United States authorized $200 million in “immediate” defense assistance and services, including military education and training, for Ukraine. A US official said the aid would include “anti-tank, anti-aircraft systems and small arms to support Ukraine’s forward defenders fending off an unprovoked Russian attack.”
Russian troops are approaching Kiev: The bulk of Russian ground forces are located about 15.5 miles (25 km) from the center of the Ukrainian capital, the UK Department of Defense said Saturday in its latest intelligence assessment. Russian strikes continue to target civilian areas: a large stretch of Makarov, a village 30 miles west of Kyiv, has suffered extensive damage from apparent Russian airstrikes. Photos posted on social media, geolocated and verified by CNN, show extensive damage to housing estates, schools and a healthcare facility.
Chernobyl runs on generators: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said repairs to the nuclear power plant’s electrical system, damaged in the March 9 Russian attack, continue as the plant now depends on external diesel generators to keep its reactors running. Russian officials also arrived at Ukraine’s largest nuclear power plant, demanding to take control of it, Energoatom, Ukraine’s state nuclear energy company, said in a statement.
Significant destruction: The cities of Kharkov, Mariupol, Nikolaev, Dnipro, Chernigov and Sumy are under constant Russian pressure, and Russian troops are expanding their offensive in Ukraine to the west. In besieged Mariupol, satellite images show destruction and fires in apartment buildings and gas stations. An emergency coordinator for Médecins Sans Frontières told CNN that the city is now “in a disaster phase.” President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that “several small towns just don’t exist anymore… They just don’t exist.”
Evacuations: Seven civilians, including a woman and a child, were killed by the Russian military while trying to escape from the village of Peremoga, Kiev region, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. Zelenskiy said 12,729 Ukrainians were successfully evacuated on Saturday.
Ukraine united: Zelenskiy said his country is more united than ever as it faces Russian violence but sees “a lack of courage in NATO members to unite for Ukraine. This is a huge problem. The Philosophical Problem of the Alliance. Zelenskiy said that Ukraine had lost about 1,300 troops as of Saturday and that the entire country was “the front line.”