Satellite images taken today show a large deployment of Russian ground forces moving in the direction of the Ukrainian capital Kiev from approximately 40 miles (64 km), a private US company said.
Images published by Maxar Technologies show a deployment of hundreds of military vehicles spanning more than 3.25 miles (5 km).
The images published by Maxar, which have been tracking the accumulation of Russian forces for weeks, cannot be verified independently.
As Russian troops approach the Ukrainian capital, the mayor of Kiev is proud of the spirit of his citizens, but remains worried about how long they can last.
After a grueling night of Russian attacks on the outskirts of the city, Mayor Vitali Klitschko was silent for a few seconds when asked if there were any plans to evacuate civilians if Russian troops managed to take Kiev.
Satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows Russian ground forces in a convoy near Ivankov, Ukraine, today
“We can’t do that because all the roads are blocked,” he said at last. We are surrounded at the moment.
When Russian troops invaded Ukraine on Thursday, the city of 2.8 million people initially reacted with concern, but also a measure of self-control. However, nerves began to fall apart as grocery stores began to close and the city’s famous deep subway station turned its stations into bomb shelters.
The mayor confirmed to the AP that nine civilians have been killed in Kiev so far, including one child.
Klitschko’s curfew began around sunset on Saturday and will last until at least 8 a.m. Monday. His order clearly states that any unauthorized person from outside can be considered a saboteur.
“We are persecuting these people and it will be much easier if no one is on the street,” Klitschko said, adding that six Russian “saboteurs” had been killed on Saturday night.
The advance of Russian troops on the city is slower than many military experts expected.
After a grueling night of Russian attacks on the outskirts of the city, Mayor Vitali Klitschko was silent for a few seconds when asked if there were any plans to evacuate civilians if Russian troops managed to take Kiev
The photos show convoys of Russian troops heading to the Ukrainian capital Kiev
The citizens of Kiev resorted to armament amid fears of an impending invasion of Russian troops. (Pictured: satellite image showing the Russian army heading for the Ukrainian capital)
“I just talked to the president [Volodymyr Zelenskyy]. Not everyone is feeling so well, “Klitschko said, adding that Ukrainian city officials were shocked but not depressed. “We show our character, our knowledge, our values.”
Over the past few days, long lines of people – men and women – have been spotted waiting to take up arms across the capital after authorities decided to distribute weapons freely to anyone willing to defend the city. However, there are concerns about arming nervous civilians with little military experience amid warnings from Russian saboteurs disguised as Ukrainian police or journalists.
“Honestly, we don’t have 100% control,” Klitschko said. “We built this territorial defense in a short time, but these are patriotic people.”
“Right now, the most important issue is to defend our country,” he added.
However, when asked about the city’s ability to replenish declining food and medicine supplies, Klico’s eyes darkened.
“We are on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe,” he said. “We currently have electricity, we currently have water and heating in our houses. But the infrastructure for food and medicine was destroyed.
Russian troops entered Ukraine on February 24, prompting the country’s president to declare martial law and sparking a series of reports by Western countries calling for heavy economic sanctions on Russia.
Ukrainian forces in Kiev destroyed a convoy of Russian vehicles in the northwestern part of the city after surviving a “brutal” night of shelling.
Volunteers, including the former Miss Ukraine Anastasia Lena, they took up arms to fight Vladimir PutinRussia’s army, with “long queues” of citizens waiting to be issued weapons at Kiev’s recruitment centers.
Ukrainian forces managed to stop the Russian offensive in the capital by blowing up bridges in the city to prevent an offensive by Moscow troops.
Russian forces were killed Sunday afternoon in Bucha, near Gostomel Air Base in northwestern Kiev, after falling into a trap when the Irpin bridge to the city was destroyed.
Footage published online allegedly shows the dire consequences of what military experts said was probably a drone strike on a column of Russian airborne forces, with parts of vehicles scattered on the road in a distorted, fire pile.
Earlier on Sunday, Ukrainian servicemen were filmed wandering downtown Kiev to impose a 39-hour curfew to keep people away from the streets.
Mayor Klitschko said Russian troops had failed to enter the city despite the bombing.
He also warned those outside after 5 pm and would be considered part of “enemy sabotage and intelligence groups” before 8 am – he later said there were no Russian troops in the city.
But he said at least nine civilians had been “lost or killed” in the capital, including one child, since the invasion.
Two clouds of smoke were filmed over the city this morning, although at least one was reportedly caused by Ukrainian forces blowing up a bridge to the capital.
A second was reportedly fired by a Russian cruise missile in Troyeschina, a northeastern suburb of the city.
And by Sunday afternoon, the Ukrainian military had warned that Belarusian special forces were preparing for airstrikes in the capital, a sign that Alexander Lukashenko had officially joined Russia’s war.