Russian forces continued to bomb targets in eastern Ukraine on Sunday, as Washington said it would comply with Kiev’s request for more military assistance by providing “the weapons it needs” to defend itself against Russia. Russia has not captured any major cities since launching its offensive on February 24, but Ukraine says it is concentrating its forces east for a major offensive and urging people to leave. Russian forces fired rockets into Ukraine’s Luhansk and Dnipropetrovsk regions on Sunday, officials said. Rockets completely destroyed the airport in the city of Dnipro, said Valentin Reznichenko, governor of the central region of Dnipropetrovsk. The Russian Defense Ministry said that high-precision missiles destroyed the headquarters of the Dnipro Battalion in Ukraine in the city of Zvonetsky. Reuters could not immediately confirm the reports. Since Russia invaded, Zelensky has called on Western powers to provide more defense assistance and to punish Moscow with harsher sanctions. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told ABC News: “We will take to Ukraine the weapons it needs to defeat the Russians to prevent them from occupying more cities and towns.” In an interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes”, Zelensky said he had confidence in his own armed forces, but “unfortunately I am not convinced that we will get everything we need” from the United States. Zelensky had earlier said on Twitter that he had spoken by telephone with German Chancellor Olaf Solz about additional sanctions, as well as more defense and financial support for his country. Zelensky also discussed with Ukrainian officials Kiev’s proposals for a new package of EU sanctions, his office said. Austrian Chancellor Carl Nehammer, who met with Zelensky in Kyiv on Saturday, will travel to Russia to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, the Austrian government announced. He will be the first European Union leader to have a face-to-face meeting with Putin after the invasion. In a video speech late Saturday, Zelensky renewed his call for a complete ban on Russian energy products and more weapons for Ukraine. The EU on Friday banned imports of Russian coal, among other products, but has not yet touched on oil and gas imports from Russia. The growing civilian casualties have sparked widespread international condemnation and new sanctions. A grave with at least two civilian bodies was found in the village of Buzova near Kyiv, said Taras Didych, head of the Dmytrivka community that includes Buzova, the latest such discovery since Russian forces withdrew from areas north of the capital to focus on east. of the country. Sullivan said Sunday that he expects the newly appointed Russian general in charge of Ukraine, Alexander Dvornikov, to authorize more atrocities against the Ukrainian civilian population. He did not mention any details. Moscow has denied allegations of war crimes by Ukraine and Western countries. Moscow has repeatedly denied targeting civilians in what it calls a “special operation” to demilitarize and “demilitarize” its southern neighbor. Ukraine and Western nations have dismissed it as an unfounded pretext for war. The Russian invasion forced about a quarter of Ukraine’s 44 million people to flee their homes, turn cities into ruins, and kill or injure thousands. Some cities in the east came under heavy bombardment, with tens of thousands of people unable to flee. Calls by Ukrainian officials for the evacuation of civilians became increasingly urgent following a rocket attack on a train station in the crowded Donetsk region of Kramatorsk on Friday. Ukrainian officials say more than 50 people have been killed. Russia has denied the allegations in a statement issued Friday stating “Similar, baseless allegations concerning Russia’s intelligence have been made more than once. Reuters could not verify the details of the attack. Residents of the Luhansk region will have nine trains on Sunday to leave, wrote the governor of the region, Serhiy Gaidai, in the Telegram messaging service. In a speech on Palm Sunday, Pope Francis called for an Easter truce in Ukraine and, in an obvious reference to Russia, questioned the value of placing a victory flag “in a heap of ruins.” In a sermon in Moscow, Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, called on the people to rally around the authorities. Our Morning and Afternoon Newsletters are compiled by Globe editors, giving you a brief overview of the day’s most important headlines. Register today. This content is displayed as provided on The Globe by the original wired service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.
