Kyiv, Ukraine — Three Russian missiles struck the city center of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine on Wednesday, hitting an eight-story building and killing at least eight people, local officials said.
At least 18 people were injured in the morning attack, the city’s acting mayor, Oleksandr Lomako, said. Chernihiv is about 150 kilometers (90 miles) north of the capital, kyiv, near the border with Russia and Belarus, and has a population of about 250,000.
The latest Russian bombardment came as the war entered its third year and approached what could be a critical juncture as the lack of additional military support from Ukraine’s Western partners leaves it increasingly furthermore at the mercy of the Kremlin’s larger forces.
During the winter months, Russia made no dramatic advances along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, focusing instead on a war of attrition. However, shortages of artillery ammunition, troops and armored vehicles in Ukraine have allowed the Russians to gradually advance, military analysts say.
Crucial for Ukraine is Washington’s delay in approving an aid package that includes around $60 billion for Ukraine. House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday he would try to move the package forward this week.
Ukraine’s needs are now dire, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.
“The Russians are emerging from positional warfare and beginning to restore battlefield maneuver due to delays in providing U.S. military assistance to Ukraine,” the ISW said in an assessment Tuesday.
“Ukraine cannot maintain current lines without the rapid resumption of American assistance, particularly air defense and artillery that only the United States can provide quickly and at scale,” he said. -he declares.
Ukrainian forces are entrenching and building fortifications in anticipation of a major Russian offensive that Kiev officials say could come as soon as next month.
Ukraine is resorting to long-range drone and missile strikes behind Russian lines, intended to disrupt Moscow’s war machine.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday that a Ukrainian drone had been shot down over the Mordovia region, about 350 kilometers east of Moscow. This is 700 kilometers (430 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Ukrainian drone developers have extended the range of their weapons and earlier this month struck a target about 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) east of Ukraine.
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