Following a devastating attack on Kharkiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday again urged Western partners to allow Kyiv to strike military targets deep within Russia, notably air bases.
“Only a systemic solution makes it possible to oppose this terror: the long-range solution to destroy Russian military aviation where it is based,” Zelensky stated in his daily speech.
“We are waiting for appropriate decisions coming primarily from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy.”
The latest in a string of strikes on Kharkiv, a residential building was damaged earlier by a guided Russian bomb, which resulted in a fire that was put out by firemen.
According to Kharkiv mayor Igor Terekhov on Telegram, rescuers retrieved the old woman’s lifeless body from the debris, injuring 42 other people in the process.
Zelensky stated in his address that Russia had also used guided bombs on Sunday to attack the Donetsk and Sumy districts.
According to him, the Russian air force launches “at least 100 such air attacks” every day.
Ukraine is requesting authorization from its Western partners to attack military targets located deep within Russia in order to stop these kinds of strikes, but they are unwilling to do so for fear of a worsening situation.
Additionally on Sunday, as Moscow’s forces edged nearer to the vital logistical center, one person was killed by Russian shelling in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, according to local authorities.
Since August, more than 20,000 people—nearly half of the city’s population—have left, and many of the surviving residents have been without power and water for the past two weeks due to Russian strikes.
“The enemy began shelling the western section of the city at approximately 11:00 am (0800 GMT)… Regretfully, one individual lost their life,” the military government of Pokrovsk posted on Telegram.
For months, Russia has been moving closer to Pokrovsk, reportedly approaching the city’s eastern borders by 10 kilometers (six miles). This information has been reported by the local government.
Moscow’s army has long targeted the city, which is situated at the junction of road and rail networks that supply Ukrainian troops and communities across the eastern front line.
Two overpasses in the city, one of which connected Pokrovsk to the nearby town of Myrnograd, were damaged by Russian attacks earlier this week, according to local media.
Before Russian forces captured them, other eastern cities like Bakhmut and Mariupol were subjected to intense shelling.
