Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready to negotiate an agreement directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war, which he said has left cities across his country bombed beyond recognition.
In the besieged Mariupol, Russian planes dropped two more heavy bombs on Tuesday, the city council said in a post on social media.
“The enemy continues to cynically destroy Ukrainian Mariupol,” the post read. “The city suffered even more damage.”
In an interview with Ukrainian TV channels, Zelenskyy said he would be willing to discuss a promise from Ukraine not to seek NATO membership in return for a ceasefire, withdrawal of Russian troops and a guarantee of Ukraine’s security.
“It is a compromise for everyone: for the West, which does not know what to do with us with regard to NATO, for Ukraine, which wants security guarantees, and for Russia, which does not want further NATO enlargement,” Zelenskyy said. .
He also reiterated his call for direct talks with Putin – without them, it remains unknown whether Russia wants to stop the war at all, Zelenskyy said.
USA TODAY ON TELEGRAM:Sign up for our new war channel between Russia and Ukraine to receive updates directly to your phone.
THE NEWS COME TO YOU:Get the latest updates on the situation in Ukraine. Sign up here.
RECENT MOVEMENT:Mapping and tracing of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army said it was forcing Russian troops out of Makariv, a strategically important Kyiv suburb, after a fierce battle. The reclaimed territory allowed Ukrainian forces to regain control of a key highway to the west and block Russian troops from surrounding Kiev from the northwest.
But Ukraine’s defense ministry said Russian forces fighting Kiev were partially capable of capturing other northwestern suburbs – Bucha, Hostomel and Irpin – some of which had been under attack almost since Russia’s military invaded late last month.
Recent developments
“Four children who were evacuated were among those injured Monday when Russian forces shelled along a humanitarian border,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video speech.
►Russian troops used stun grenades and fired into the air on Monday to break up protesters in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson.
►France and Mexico are pressuring UN members to mention Russia’s invasion in a resolution on the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Ukraine. But South Africa argues against that approach, saying that the introduction of political issues could block consensus on helping civilians.
►Zelenskyy is set to deliver his speech to the Japanese parliament on Wednesday to gather international support for his country’s fight against the Russian invasion.
Ukrainian refugees arrive at the border ready to resume life
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says more than 3.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion, an emigration that led to Europe’s worst refugee crisis since World War II.
With Russian ammunition destroying cities and troops tightening a stranglehold, more displaced people are leaving every day. They arrive at the border with only a bag of personal belongings and clothes, mostly women and children queuing in the bitter cold to get shelter, food and transport to unknown destinations.
Still, the displaced Ukrainians may have advantages over millions fleeing World War II and other former military conflicts.
An international refugee assistance system developed at the end of World War II is more coordinated than at any point in history. Nonprofit aid organizations are larger and more organized. And at least for now, Ukrainians are being welcomed in neighboring countries. Read more here.
– Dennis Wagner
Russia is increasing military flights, says senior U.S. official
Russian forces have increased the number of military airstrikes over Ukraine in the past two days, a senior U.S. defense official said. The official said the Russians have carried out up to 300 excursions – a combat mission for an individual aircraft – within the last 24 hours.
Most of the flights involve air-to-ground attacks, mostly on stationary targets, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the military’s assessment.
Russia has far more aircraft than Ukraine, but has not yet taken air superiority over the country.
– Celina Tebor
Biden confirms that Russia used hypersonic missiles in Ukraine
President Joe Biden reaffirmed Russia’s use of hypersonic missiles in Ukraine and warned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ‘back against the wall’, meaning he could resort to more stringent tactics as the war stretches into another week.
In a speech at the Business Roundtables quarterly summit on Monday, Biden said Russia used the fast-flying missiles “because that’s the only thing they can get through” Ukrainian defenses. He called it a “consistent weapon” that is “almost impossible to stop.”
“There’s a reason they use it,” Biden said.
Russia has said it twice used its Kinzhal air missile system to attack targets in Ukraine. Hypersonic missiles can move at five times the speed of sound or more. The Russian military said these missiles were capable of hitting targets within a range of more than 1,200 miles, or approximately the distance from New York City to Kansas City.
– Courtney Subramanian
Holocaust survivor killed in Ukraine, after Russian shelling hit his home
A 96-year-old Holocaust survivor was killed last week in a Russian bomb attack in his hometown of Kharkiv, Ukraine. The victim, Borys Romanchenko, survived the Nazi concentration camps in Buchenwald, Peenemünde, Dora and Bergen-Belsen during World War II. Buchenwald and the Mittelbau-Dora Memorials Foundation confirmed Romanchenko’s death confirmed on Twitter on Monday.
The foundation said Romanchenko’s grandson told them the multi-storey building he lived in was hit by Russian grenades, adding that they were “deeply concerned” by the news of his death.
– Jordan Mendoza
Starring: Associated Press