E-Paper
Russian troops have occupied govt building in Kharkiv, says Kherson governor
The delegations of Russia and Ukraine are going to hold the second round of ceasefire talks in a few hours in Belarus. The first round had yielded scanty progress.
The regional governor of Ukraine's port city Kherson, Hennadiy Laguta said on Thursday that Russian forces have taken control of an administrative building in the east European country's second-largest city Kharkiv. Laguta shared the update in an online post, according to Reuters.
The development comes as the Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its second week during the day. Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday that it has captured the first sizable city of the east European nation - Kherson, even as Ukraine maintains that its troops continue to defend the region located near the Black Sea.
Full coverage of Russia-Ukraine conflict here
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who regularly addresses his people via videos, said that the country's defence lines were holding the Russian forces. He added that there has been no breather in missile strikes by Moscow that have transformed Kharkiv and Ukraine's capital Kyiv into a rubble.
The stiff opposition by the Ukrainian army has allowed Russians to take control of only Kherson so far, which in turn has intensified the shelling in conflict zones.
Also Read | Russia-Ukraine war: Which cities have Russian forces captured so far?
In Ukraine’s southern port city Mairupol, council authorities said that Russian troops were constantly and intentionally launching airstrikes in civilian infrastructure, thus leaving it without water, power and heating in freezing cold. This also has disrupted movement of supplies and evacuation of people.
Notably, Russia began the shelling in Ukraine on Tuesday.
The delegations of Russia and Ukraine are going to hold the second round of ceasefire talks in a few hours in Belarus. The first round had yielded scanty progress. According to AFP, the Ukrainian side said it wants to agree on “humanitarian corridor” during talks to Russia.
