Russia strikes Ukrainian cities from east to west ahead of Zelensky-Biden meeting
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian missiles pounded cities across Ukraine early Thursday morning, authorities said, sparking fires, killing at least three people and trapping others under rubble, and Ukrainian ally Poland announced that it would stop providing weapons amid a trade dispute.
The early morning missile attack on what’s known as the International Day of Peace was Russia’s largest in more than a month and came amid the United Nations General Assembly summit in New York, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had denounced Russia as “a terrorist state.”
Zelensky is to meet Thursday with President Biden and congressional leaders in Washington, with an additional $24-billion aid package hanging in the balance.
Poland, which has been a major supporter of Ukraine, said it would stop transferring its own weapons to Ukraine as it works to modernize its own military, but denied the decision was linked to a simmering dispute over a temporary ban on Ukrainian grain imports.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the decision would not affect NATO and U.S. weapons transfers through Poland.
“We are no longer transferring any weapons to Ukraine because now we will arm ourselves with the most modern weapons,” he said in an interview on the private TV broadcaster Polsat News late Wednesday.
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A dispute about whether Ukrainian grain should be allowed to enter the domestic markets of Poland and other European Union countries has pushed the tight relationship between Kyiv and Warsaw to its lowest point since Russia invaded Ukraine last year.
Morawiecki stressed that Poland would defend its economic interests but added that the dispute over grain imports would not hurt Ukraine’s security.
“We are not going to risk the security of Ukraine,” he said. Poland has transferred large amounts of its older weapons to Ukraine and has been upgrading its own inventory with new equipment purchased from South Korea and other countries.
Air-raid sirens sounded repeatedly across Ukraine, as Russia launched dozens of missiles and, near the front lines, likely used shorter-range artillery to pound the southern city of Kherson. Three people were killed in Kherson on Thursday and at least four injured after a residential building was hit, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on social media.
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Seven people were injured in Kyiv, including a 9-year-old girl, Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said, as missile strikes blew out windows in buildings and cars and left fires burning around crumpled metal wreckage.
Marharyta Moldokova, 76, who had taken shelter on the floor of her Kyiv home just before hearing the explosion and sound of her window shattering, denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“God, we can’t wait for someone to shoot him,” she said. “Everything is not enough for him. ... What does he need?”
Students at the National Academy of Statistics, Accounting and Audit in Kyiv stood outside looking at a building where metal strips hung from the portico and empty window frames were bent inward.
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Illia Melnyk said he had taken shelter behind two walls as he heard an explosion and saw a flash and then ran outside.
“When I came out, I saw bricks falling from the door,” he said. “It was visible how the wall was broken and the door was knocked out. ... It was scary.”
The academy, located in Kyiv’s cozy Tatarka neighborhood, has endured numerous missile strikes and damage from falling debris. It is located near an arms maker that manufactures high-precision ammunition and missiles.
The Ukrainian Air Force said it had intercepted 36 of 43 cruise missiles launched deep into Ukraine. Kharkiv, closer to the front lines, was struck with S-300 missiles.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it targeted Ukrainian arms factories and radio-technical intelligence centers with precision-guided missiles and drones. It said, without providing details, that “the strike achieved the objectives and all targets were hit.” It was not possible to confirm that claim.
Ukraine’s international allies are making arguments before the United Nations’ top court in support of Kyiv’s case against Russia and its invasion.
At least six strikes damaged civilian infrastructure in the Slobidskyi district of Kharkiv, said regional Gov. Oleh Sinegubov. The city’s mayor added that two people had been hospitalized.
At least 10 people were injured and at least one person was rescued from under rubble in Cherkasy, in central Ukraine, according to Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs. Up to 23 people may still be buried under rubble in Cherkasy after the morning strike, said Cherkasy regional Gov. Ihor Taburets. Rescue services were working to clear the debris.
An industrial zone was hit in the western region of Lviv, damaging buildings and starting a fire, but no information on casualties was immediately available, Klymenko added.
Regional Gov. Vitalii Koval reported strikes in the city of Rivne in the northwest region of the same name, without immediately providing details.
The Ukrainian armed forces said they attacked a military airport near the city of Saka in Russian-annexed Crimea.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said 22 drones were taken down overnight by air-defense systems, 19 above Russian-annexed Crimea and three others in the Kursk, Belgorod and Oryol regions near Ukraine. The ministry did not say whether there were any casualties.
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