Situation on the ground, international reactions, sanctions: the point on the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
Missile strike on Lviv: at least 6 dead and 8 injured
Russian missile strikes on Monday morning on Lviv, a major city in western Ukraine, left at least six dead and eight injured and “severely damaged” military infrastructure, the regional governor announced.
“At this time, we have identified six dead and eight wounded. There is a child among the victims,” Maksym Kozitsky said on Telegram, adding that the strikes had hit military infrastructure and a tire garage, causing fires.
Mariupol: end of Russian ultimatum, Ukrainians “will fight to the end” –
The last Ukrainian defenders of Mariupol, a port city in southeastern Ukraine besieged for weeks, still hold parts of the city and they “will fight to the end”, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal warned in a broadcast interview Sunday by the American channel ABC. “No, the city has not fallen. Our military forces, our soldiers are still there. They will fight until the end. As I speak to you, they are still in Mariupol,” he said. .
The head of Ukrainian diplomacy Dmytro Kouleba accused him of the Russian army of wanting to “raze the city at all costs”, in an interview also broadcast on Sunday by another American channel, CBS. Ukrainian soldiers besieged in Mariupol on Sunday appeared to have ignored Russia’s ultimatum to lay down their arms and evacuate this strategic port in southeastern Ukraine, whose capture would be a major victory for Moscow . “What remains of the Ukrainian army and a large group of civilians are surrounded by Russian forces. They continue their fight, but it seems, from the behavior of the Russian army in Mariupol, that they have decided to raze the city at all costs,” said Dmytro Kouleba.
Russia wants to “destroy” the Donbass, says Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday accused Russia of wanting to “destroy” the entire eastern region of Donbass, promising that everything would be done to defend it, starting with the strategic port of Mariupol.
“Russian soldiers are preparing for an offensive in the east of our country in the near future. They literally want to finish off and destroy the Donbass,” Zelensky said in a video message.
“Inhuman” situation in Mariupol (Zelensky)
“The situation in Mariupol remains as serious as it can be. Simply inhumane,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video message posted on Saturday evening. “That’s what the Russian Federation did. Did it deliberately. (…) Russia is deliberately trying to destroy anyone in Mariupol.”
Earlier, the head of state had warned that the “elimination” of the last Ukrainian soldiers present in the city “would put an end to any peace negotiations” with Moscow.
He again called on the world to “prepare” for Russia’s possible use of its nuclear weapons. We need “drugs (against radiation), air-raid shelters”.
No humanitarian corridor on Sunday
Ukrainian authorities announced on Sunday the suspension of humanitarian corridors for the evacuation of civilians from eastern Ukraine, for lack of an agreement with the Russian army on a halt to firing.
“This morning, we failed to negotiate a ceasefire on evacuation routes with the occupiers. That is why, unfortunately, we are not going to open humanitarian corridors today,” he said. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on Telegram.
Kharkiv: at least 5 dead in a series of strikes
At least five people were killed and 13 injured on Sunday in a series of strikes on Kharkiv, a major city in northeastern Ukraine, emergency services told AFP.
AFP journalists heard two bursts of gunfire and saw five fires spreading through residential areas in central Kharkiv. Fire trucks were crossing the city in all directions to reach the burning apartments.
Russian strikes also near kyiv –
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that it had bombed a military factory on the outskirts of kyiv, as Moscow intensifies its attacks on the Ukrainian capital.
“Overnight, high-precision missiles launched by aircraft destroyed an ammunition factory near Brovary in the Kyiv region,” the ministry said in a statement on its Telegram channel.
Zelensky invited Macron to come and see the “genocide”
Volodymyr Zelensky also claimed, in an interview with CNN broadcast on Sunday, to have invited Emmanuel Macron to go to Ukraine to see with his own eyes that the Russian forces are committing “genocide”, a term that his French counterpart has so far used. refused to employ.