According to official reports, several people were killed in further attacks on the Ukrainian capital Kiev and the eastern Ukrainian metropolis Kharkiv. According to reports from Saturday, there were also air strikes in other parts of Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called the highest number of dead soldiers from his own ranks so far.
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on television that several people in his city had been taken to hospital with serious injuries. There is a dead man. The attack hit the district of Darnyzja, in the south-east of the metropolis. The Russian military claims the target was a tank factory. Initially, there was no confirmation from the Ukrainian authorities. Ukrainian arms company Ukroboronprom said only that a missile factory southwest of Kiev was hit.
Zelenskyj threatens to end peace talks
According to official information, at least one person was also killed in an attack in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. In addition, 18 people were injured. Attacks were also reported in western Ukraine in the Lviv region and at a military airfield in Oleksandriya in central Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has threatened to end peace talks with Moscow if Russia “drops” the last Ukrainian troops in the hotly contested port city of Mariupol. It would be a “dead end” for both sides because we are not negotiating over our territories or our people, Zelenskyi told the Ukrainska Pravda news website on Saturday. He also accused Russia of not allowing escape corridors. “To be honest, we have no faith in the Mariupol negotiations.”
Mariupol has been under siege since the first days after the Russian invasion on 24 February. The city, which once had more than 400,000 inhabitants, is now largely destroyed and the humanitarian situation is catastrophic. With the capture of the port city, Russian troops would establish a land connection between the two areas and cut Ukraine off from the Sea of Azov.
On the American broadcaster CNN, Selenskyj again warned about a possible use of nuclear weapons by the Russians. “Not just me – the whole world, all countries need to worry because it may not be real information, but it may be the truth.” The 44-year-old was responding to statements by CIA chief Bill Burns, who went from military setbacks to Russia in Ukraine had emphasized that the possible threat of a Russian use of tactical nuclear bombs should not be taken lightly.
Russian troops in the east likely ready to attack
Meanwhile, the governor of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region said Russia had already assembled tens of thousands of troops for an offensive in the near future. In addition, hundreds of technology units were transported to the region, said Serhij Hajdaj. “They have already prepared everything for a breakthrough.” In his estimation, Russian troops were just waiting for better weather before launching their attacks simultaneously on the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. According to weather forecasts, rain should stop in both regions by the middle of next week.
FAZ Ukraine newsletter
Daily at 12:00 pm
LOG IN
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised to deliver armed vehicles to Ukraine in the coming days. Johnson assured Selenskyj that Britain would continue to supply Ukraine with material to defend itself, Downing Street said in a statement late on Saturday.
Moscow, in turn, imposed an entry ban on the British prime minister in response to Western sanctions. His predecessor Theresa May, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace and Secretary of State Liz Truss are also no longer allowed to go to Russia. A list published by the Foreign Office in Moscow includes the names of 13 British officials. Russia had previously issued entry bans against US President Joe Biden and politicians from the European Union, Australia and New Zealand.
Published/Updated:
Published/Updated:
Published/Updated:
In the evening, the Russian Defense Ministry also claimed that the Ukrainian armed forces were almost completely expelled from Mariupol. The RIA news agency quoted a ministry spokesman as saying that some fighters were still trapped at the Azovstal factory. Thus, the Ukrainians would have lost more than 4,000 soldiers in the besieged coastal city. The information cannot be independently verified.