Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that all sources that allow Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin to finance the war must be cut off, Ukrinform reported.
According to his data, last night the Russian army fired two ballistic missiles at the center of Dobropilya in the Donetsk region, BTA specifies.
"After our services arrived at the scene, a new strike was launched, this time deliberately at the rescuers. This is a vile and inhumane tactic of intimidation that the Russians are using," the president said in a statement on “Facebook“. “Unfortunately, we have information about 11 deaths. My condolences to their relatives and friends. Over 30 people were injured, including five children. "Eight five-story buildings, an administrative building and a fire station were damaged," Zelensky added.
The Ukrainian leader thanked the emergency services who responded to the scene and added that "such strikes show that Russia's goals remain unchanged." "Therefore, it is necessary to continue to do everything possible to protect people's lives, strengthen air defenses and tighten sanctions against Russia."
"Everything that helps Putin finance the war must be cut off," he wrote.
According to experts, after the recent suspension of US military aid to Ukraine, Putin took advantage of the opportunity to accelerate the achievement of his military goals, DPA notes.
One of the main ones is establishing full control over the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, which remain partially occupied by Russian troops and for which the two sides are currently engaged in fierce fighting.
Russian troops have recaptured three villages in the western Russian Kursk region from Ukrainian forces, TASS reported, citing the Defense Ministry.
The villages are named Viktorovka, Nikolaevka and Staraya Sorochyna.
The information could not be independently verified.
Russian troops have been trying since August last year to push back Kiev's forces, which then launched a surprise and lightning offensive in the Kursk region and managed to seize part of Russian territory, Reuters notes.
According to information from open sources this week, the situation of Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region has sharply deteriorated and they are now almost completely surrounded.
"The Two Majors", a pro-Russian military blog, posted a message on Telegram today that Russian troops had launched an attack on Sudzha, a key town about 10 km from the border. The post added that the situation of Kiev's forces was "close to critical".