KYIV, UKRAINE --
Russian forces shelled Ukraine’s second-largest metropolis on Monday, rocking a residential neighbourhood, and closed in on the capital, Kyiv, in a 27-kilometre convoy of a whole bunch of tanks and different autos, as talks geared toward stopping the preventing yielded solely an settlement to maintain speaking.
The nation’s embattled president mentioned the stepped-up shelling was geared toward forcing him into concessions.
“I consider Russia is attempting to place strain (on Ukraine) with this straightforward technique,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned late Monday in a video deal with. He didn't supply particulars of the hourslong talks that befell earlier, however mentioned that Kyiv was not ready to make concessions “when one aspect is hitting one another with rocket artillery.”
Amid ever-growing worldwide condemnation, Russia discovered itself more and more remoted 5 days into its invasion, whereas additionally dealing with unexpectedly fierce resistance on the bottom in Ukraine and financial havoc at house.
In the meantime, an embattled Ukraine moved to solidify its ties to the West by making use of to hitch the European Union — a largely symbolic transfer for now, however one that's unlikely to take a seat nicely with Putin, who has lengthy accused the U.S. of attempting to tug Ukraine out of Moscow’s orbit.
A high Putin aide and head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, mentioned that the primary talks held between the 2 sides because the invasion lasted practically 5 hours and that the envoys “discovered sure factors on which widespread positions might be foreseen.” He mentioned they agreed to proceed the discussions within the coming days.
Because the talks alongside the Belarusian border wrapped up, a number of blasts might be heard in Kyiv, and Russian troops superior on town of practically 3 million. The huge convoy of armored autos, tanks, artillery and help autos was 17 miles (25 kilometers) from the middle of town and stretched for about 40 miles, based on satellite tv for pc imagery from Maxar Applied sciences.
The Maxar pictures additionally confirmed deployments of floor forces and floor assault helicopter models in southern Belarus.
Folks in Kyiv lined up for groceries after the tip of a weekend curfew, standing beneath a constructing with a gaping gap blown in its aspect. Kyiv remained “a key aim” for the Russians, Zelensky mentioned, noting that it was hit by three missile strikes on Monday and that a whole bunch of saboteurs had been roaming town.
“They wish to break our nationhood, that’s why the capital is consistently beneath risk,” Zelensky mentioned.
Messages aimed on the advancing Russian troopers popped up on billboards, bus stops and digital visitors indicators throughout the capital. Some used profanity to encourage Russians to go away. Others appealed to their humanity.
“Russian soldier — Cease! Bear in mind your loved ones. Go house with a clear conscience,” one learn.
Video from Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-biggest metropolis, with a inhabitants of about 1.5 million, confirmed residential areas being shelled, with house buildings shaken by repeated, highly effective blasts. Flashes of fireside and grey plumes of smoke might be seen.
Footage launched by the federal government from Kharkiv depicted what seemed to be a house with water gushing from a pierced ceiling. What seemed like an undetonated projectile was on the ground.
Authorities in Kharkiv mentioned not less than seven folks had been killed and dozens injured. They warned that casualties might be far larger.
“They wished to have a blitzkrieg, but it surely failed, so that they act this manner,” mentioned 83-year-old Valentin Petrovich, who watched the shelling from his downtown house and gave simply his first identify and his patronymic, a center identify derived from his father’s identify, out of worry for his security.
The Russian army has denied concentrating on residential areas regardless of ample proof of shelling of properties, colleges and hospitals.
Preventing raged in different cities and cities throughout the nation. The strategic port metropolis of Mariupol, on the Sea of Azov, is “hanging on,” mentioned Zelensky adviser Oleksiy Arestovich. An oil depot was reported bombed within the jap metropolis of Sumy.
Regardless of its huge army energy, Russia nonetheless lacked management of Ukrainian airspace, a shock that will assist clarify how Ukraine has to date prevented a rout.
Within the seaside resort city of Berdyansk, dozens of protesters chanted angrily in the principle sq. in opposition to Russian occupiers, yelling at them to go house and singing the Ukrainian nationwide anthem. They described the troopers as exhausted younger conscripts.
“Frightened youngsters, frightened seems to be. They wish to eat,” Konstantin Maloletka, who runs a small store, mentioned by phone. He mentioned the troopers went right into a grocery store and grabbed canned meat, vodka and cigarettes.
“They ate proper within the retailer,” he mentioned. “It seemed like they haven’t been fed in current days.”
Throughout Ukraine, terrified households huddled in a single day in shelters, basements or corridors.
“I sit and pray for these negotiations to finish efficiently, in order that they attain an settlement to finish the slaughter,” mentioned Alexandra Mikhailova, weeping as she clutched her cat in a shelter in Mariupol. Round her, mother and father tried to console kids and maintain them heat.
For a lot of, Russia’s announcement of a nuclear excessive alert stirred fears that the West might be drawn into direct battle with Russia. However a senior U.S. protection official, talking on situation of anonymity, mentioned the US had but to see any considerable change in Russia’s nuclear posture.
As far-reaching Western sanctions on Russian banks and different establishments took maintain, the ruble plummeted, and Russia’s Central Financial institution scrambled to shore it up, as did Putin, signing a decree limiting overseas foreign money.
However that did little to calm Russian fears. In Moscow, folks lined as much as withdraw money because the sanctions threatened to drive up costs and scale back the usual of residing for hundreds of thousands of strange Russians.
In one more blow to Russia’s financial system, oil large Shell mentioned it's pulling in a foreign country due to the invasion. It introduced it's going to withdraw from its joint ventures with state-owned fuel firm Gazprom and different entities and finish its involvement within the Nord Stream 2 pipeline mission between Russia and Europe.
The financial sanctions, ordered by the U.S. and different allies, had been only one contributor to Russia’s rising standing as a pariah nation.
Russian airliners are banned from European airspace, Russian media is restricted in some nations, and a few high-tech merchandise can not be exported to the nation. On Monday, in a serious blow to a soccer-mad nation, Russian groups had been suspended from all worldwide soccer.
In different developments:
The chief prosecutor of the Worldwide Felony Court docket mentioned he'll open an investigation quickly into doable warfare crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity in Ukraine.
Cyberattacks hit Ukrainian embassies around the globe, and Russian media shops.
America introduced it's expelling 12 members of Russia’s U.N. mission, accusing them of spying.
The 193-nation UN Common Meeting opened its first emergency session in many years, with Meeting President Abdulla Shahid calling for an instantaneous cease-fire and “a full return to diplomacy and dialogue.”
The UN human rights chief mentioned not less than 102 civilians have been killed and a whole bunch wounded — warning that determine might be an enormous undercount — and Ukraine’s president mentioned not less than 16 kids had been among the many useless.
Greater than a half-million folks have fled the nation because the invasion, one other UN official mentioned, a lot of them going to Poland, Romania and Hungary.
Among the many refugees in Hungary was Maria Pavlushko, 24, an data expertise mission supervisor from a metropolis west of Kyiv. She mentioned her father stayed behind to battle the Russians.
“I'm proud about him,” she mentioned, including that a lot of her pals had been planning to battle too.
The negotiators at Monday’s talks met at an extended desk with the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag on one aspect and the Russian tricolor on the opposite.
However whereas Ukraine despatched its protection minister and different high officers, the Russian delegation was led by Putin’s adviser on tradition — an unlikely envoy for ending a warfare and maybe an indication of how severely Moscow took the talks.
Map by CTV Information' Jasna Baric
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Isachenkov and Litvinova reported from Moscow. Robert Burns in Washington; Francesca Ebel, Josef Federman and Andrew Drake in Kyiv; Lorne Prepare dinner in Brussels; and different AP journalists from around the globe contributed to this report.
Correction:
This story has been corrected to indicate that the EU is not going to present fighter jets to Ukraine. An EU official misspoke. Not less than one Western nation is finding out a request from Ukraine to offer fighter jets; EU cash is not going to be used.