Ukraine war live updates: Wave of Russian strikes kill at least 20 and injure dozens, officials say
Russian strikes hit the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Sunday, officials said, killing at least 20 people and injuring dozens more in an attack that reverberated across the city and added to a wave of assaults on civilian sites in recent days.
The strikes came as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prepared to speak to EU leaders by video link at a summit in the French city of Strasbourg.
Top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said the attacks demonstrated the need for Europe to step up military support for Ukraine.
“Russia is trying to punish Ukraine for the courage and success of its defence of its territory,” he wrote on Twitter. “It is urgent to provide Ukraine with all the weapons it needs to defend its sovereignty.”
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Background: Russia invades Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, after ordering the deployment of Russian troops to the Ukrainian border in the months prior.
Russia’s invasion sparked one of the deadliest conflicts in Europe since World War II, with thousands of civilian and military casualties on both sides.
Fighting has largely centered on the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine, known as the Donbas.
Russia has also targeted cities with missile and drone strikes, including Kyiv, the capital.
Here is a look at how the conflict has unfolded so far:
- February 24, 2022: Putin announces a “special military operation” against Ukraine, claiming the country poses a threat to Russia’s security and that Moscow’s goal is to “defend sovereignty” and “protect people who have been victims of abuse and genocide” by Kyiv, in a televised address.
- March 1, 2022: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the European Parliament via video, asking members to support five resolutions: that Russia be deemed a “state sponsor of terrorism”, that Russia be excluded from the United Nations Human Rights Council, that a no-fly zone be established over Ukraine, that all countries impose sanctions on Russia, and that armed forces from other countries be sent to Ukraine.
- March 16, 2022: Putin announces a “general mobilization” of Russian troops, despite prior denials of plans to mobilize more soldiers. Russian officials claim the goal of this mobilization is to supplement existing troops in Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.
- April 20, 2022: Ukrainian forces launch a counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region, resulting in the retaking of several towns and cities and the liberation of prisoners of war.
- May 9, 2022: Putin celebrates the Soviet Union’s victory over Germany in World War II, marking the first time he has acknowledged the holiday since 2015. Russian media warns of a “long, tough war” ahead with Ukraine.
- June 27, 2022: Ukraine gains control of the Zaporizhia dam, the largest in Europe, freeing Russian troops to reinforce other areas. Ukrainian officials express concerns that Russia will use the dam as a bargaining chip in future peace negotiations.
- July 7, 2022: Ukrainian forces retake control of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, after a months-long Russian occupation.
- August 26, 2022: Ukrainian forces retake the Russian-occupied Kherson airport, just one day after Russia celebrated the nine-month anniversary of its “special military operation”.
- September 6, 2022: Ukrainian forces continue their counteroffensive, successfully recapturing more than a dozen settlements in the past week.
- September 18, 2022: Putin orders Russia’s military to pull back from the Kyiv region and focus on the Donbas, with the intention to “increase mutual trust” ahead of potential peace talks.
- October 3, 2022: Ukraine launches a counteroffensive, retaking dozens of towns and villages in the south of the country.
- October 26, 2022: Ukrainian forces successfully recapture the city of Kherson, marking a significant setback for Russia.
- November 15, 2022: Ukraine launches a new counteroffensive, with its special operations forces successfully recapturing the town of Bakhmut, a key objective in the battle for the Donbas.
Despite Russia’s retreat from Kyiv and much of northern Ukraine, fighting has continued in the east and south of the country.
Zelenskyy has repeatedly urged Western leaders to provide more weapons to Ukraine, saying that Russia benefits from having “an advantage in artillery, an advantage in missiles” and an “advantage in ammunition”.
In a recent speech to Irish parliamentarians, he emphasized the importance of military aid, saying: “It is not about who is a leader in this or that rating, or whose ratings are growing, or shrinking. It is about whether Europe will be free and whether the world will be able to withstand the new threat”.
To this end, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has called for the delivery of air defense systems with a range of at least 250 miles, as well as jet fighters, tanks, and artillery.
Reznikov has also emphasized the importance of training Ukrainian troops on how to use the equipment, stating: “We have pilots, we have mechanics, we have many different specialists”.
Despite the ongoing violence, Ukraine has successfully received an array of weapons and equipment from Western allies in recent months.
In late October, Ukraine took delivery of a significant amount of weapons, including American HIMARS rocket systems, AMRAM missiles, and 155mm howitzers.
These weapons are expected to play a key role in Ukraine’s counteroffensives against Russian forces.
On top of that, Ukraine’s military has recently begun receiving M142 HIMARS systems, which have already been used to launch attacks on Russian forces.
In late September, Ukrainian soldiers were seen operating HIMARS systems in the Donbas, while videos have also emerged of Ukrainian troops firing Canadian Leopard 2 tanks.
Meanwhile, the United States and Germany have both pledged to provide Ukraine with state-of-the-art weapons, including the M1 Abrams tank and the Marder infantry fighting vehicle, respectively.
That said, the delivery of such weapons will likely take months, if not years, to materialize in large numbers.
Despite limited progress on the battlefield, Ukraine has made significant diplomatic gains in recent months, notably being granted official candidate status for EU accession.
While Russia continues to attack Ukrainian civilian sites, Zelenskyy has insisted that Ukraine will continue to defend its territory, saying: “We don’t want to become defenders of Europe, we want to become members of a common European family”.
This sentiment was echoed by Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, who has repeatedly expressed support for Ukraine’s accession to the EU.
Indeed, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to address EU leaders by video link at the European Parliament on Sunday, November 27.
The address comes as leaders gather for a summit in the French city of Strasbourg to discuss, among other things, Ukraine’s application for membership.
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Latest developments
Russian strikes hit the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Sunday, officials said, killing at least 20 people and injuring dozens more in an attack that reverberated across the city and added to a wave of assaults on civilian sites in recent days.
The strikes came as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prepared to speak to EU leaders by video link at a summit in the French city of Strasbourg.
Top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said the attacks demonstrated the need for Europe to step up military support for Ukraine.
“Russia is trying to punish Ukraine for the courage and success of its defence of its territory,” he wrote on Twitter. “It is urgent to provide Ukraine with all the weapons it needs to defend its sovereignty.”
In a tweet, Zelenskyy said “the Russian military has become a terrorist organization,” accusing it of “deliberately and consciously” targeting civilians.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Moscow’s forces hit a Ukrainian military training center in Kyiv, claiming it was “used for the deployment of foreign mercenaries,” according to the TASS news agency.
Ukrainian officials said a residential building was also hit, and that at least 20 people were killed and dozens more were injured.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack was a Russian missile strike, not an air strike as initially reported.
“There were no military targets at the site, only residential buildings, offices, and businesses,” Klitschkov said on Telegram. “Fortunately, for now, we have information about only one deceased person.”
The strikes came after Russia launched attacks on Kyiv on Tuesday, hitting a residential building and a hotel.
Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian sites have increased in recent days, as Putin’s forces seek to stall Ukraine’s counteroffensives.
On Thursday, Russian missiles hit the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk, killing at least 21 people and injuring more than 100 others, according to Ukrainian officials.
The attack came just as a humanitarian convoy arrived in the city, delivering aid to the front lines.
Ukrainian officials said Russian missiles hit a residential building, a restaurant, and a hospital, among other sites.
Russian attacks on Kramatorsk began on October 8, killing at least 40 people and injuring more than 100 others, according to Ukrainian officials.
These attacks have been characterized as a response to Ukraine’s counteroffensive, which has seen its troops successfully recapture several key cities and territories in the east and south of the country.
On October 28, Ukrainian forces liberated the city of Kherson, marking a major setback for Russia and a significant victory for Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials said on Sunday that Russian forces had fired at Ukrainian troops from the bridge in Kherson, but that Ukrainian soldiers were “holding their positions.”
Image: Ukrainian soldiers stand on a mound of earth at a position near Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022. Ukrainian officials said Sunday that at least 20 people were killed and dozens more were injured in a Russian strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
