Russian attack on Ukraine: “Today will be the hardest day”

The Russian troops continue to advance towards Kiev. The Ukrainian government expects tank attacks on the capital later in the day. President Selenskyj accuses Russia of also attacking civilian targets.

The shelling of the Ukrainian capital Kiev by Russian troops continues. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his government had information that subversive groups were planning to enter the city. The Ukrainian military reported significant fighting in Ivankiv, about 60 kilometers northwest of Kiev. A bridge over a river was destroyed.

Apparently, Russian troops tried to advance to Kiev from the north. Russia apparently plans to break through to Kiev with tanks from Ivankiv and Chernihiv, Interior Ministry adviser Anton Gerashchenko told Telegram. Some tanks were set on fire with rockets. “Today will be the toughest day,” he said.

Zelenskyy accuses Russia of attacking civilian targets

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy accused the Russian army of also targeting civilian areas in its attacks. At the same time, in a video speech, the head of state praised the Ukrainians for their “heroism” in the face of the Russian advance.

Ukrainian armed forces “are doing everything they can” to defend the country, he assured. Russia must sooner or later talk to Ukraine to end the fighting, he said. “The sooner this talk starts, the smaller the losses for Russia itself will be,” he added. Zelenskyj also called on the Russian population to protest against the attack on Ukraine.

Zelenskyy suspected that the Russian attack was intended to overthrow him. “According to our information, the enemy has declared me target number one, my family target number two,” he said – an assessment shared by the US government. He complained that NATO did not want to accept Ukraine and that the country was on its own.

Downed plane over Kiev

On day two of the Russian attack, Ukraine reported rocket fire on the capital Kiev during the night. Among other things, a multi-storey residential building was hit, as the city administration announced. “Terrible Russian rocket attacks on Kiev,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted.

According to Zelenskyy, at 4:00 a.m. local time, Russia resumed rocket attacks. Both civilian and military targets would be shot at, he said in a televised speech. The advance of the Russian troops had been stopped in most places.

Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko published a video on the social network Telegram showing fires on several floors of a building that was hit. The city administration reported three injuries, one of them was life-threatening. Ukrainian forces shot down a Russian plane, wrote an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister. It is still unclear whether the aircraft was manned.

Rocket fire also reported in the south

Fighting was also reported from other parts of the country. In the Zaporizhia region in the south, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense also reported Russian rocket fire. The attack on a border guard unit killed and injured. According to media reports, Russian troops also attacked the airport in the western city of Rivne. Fighting was also reported from Sumy in the northeast of the country near the Russian border. This information could not be independently verified.

Yesterday Zelenskyj had ordered a general mobilization, which is to apply for 90 days and provides for the call-up of conscripts and reservists. He did not say how many men will be affected. In addition, the Ukrainian government asked hackers for help to protect critical infrastructure and spy on Russian troops in cyberspace, according to two people familiar with the matter. A corresponding request from the government appeared in hacker forums.

Apparently many casualties on both sides

President Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian army lost 137 soldiers and 316 soldiers were injured on the first day of the Russian invasion. Russia attacked the entire territory of Ukraine.

Russian troops also suffered heavy casualties, according to Ukrainian sources. The Ministry of Defense in Kiev spoke of 30 destroyed Russian tanks, 130 armored vehicles, seven airplanes and six helicopters. About 800 Russian soldiers were killed. The information could not be independently verified. The Russian side did not comment on this.

Macron is on the phone with Putin

French President Emmanuel Macron described another phone call with Russian President Putin as “frank, direct and short”. In the conversation, at the request of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, he called on Putin to end the fighting in Ukraine as quickly as possible, Macron said.

Referring to the ongoing war in Ukraine, he admitted: “It hasn’t had any effect, you can see that very clearly at the moment because the Russian president has chosen war.”