Russian forces launched a rocket attack on a Ukrainian railway station that killed at least 15 people and wounded 50 others today – six months to the day since Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of the country, and 31 years after the former Soviet country broke away from Moscow’s rule.
Volodymyr Zelensky told the UN Security Council that a Russian missile strike hit a passenger train and nearby vehicles at the rural train station in Chaplyne, a village near the major city of Dnipro – the scene of intense recent fighting between Ukrainian and Kremlin forces.
The wartime President had previously warned that the ‘erratic’ Russian dictator would use the killing of the daughter of his ultra-nationalist aide Alexander Dugin – dubbed ‘Putin’s Rasputin’ – in a car bombing in Moscow last week as a pretext for further aggression.
While most fighting is now taking place in the east and south, where the fighting has stalled, Russia regularly strikes Ukrainian cities with long-range missiles, according to Kyiv.
In the Dnipropetrovsk region on the southern front earlier today, the Russians again shelled the cities of Nikopol and Marhanets, damaging several buildings and wounding two people, authorities said. Russian troops also shelled the city of Zaporizhzhia, but no casualties were reported.
Kremlin rockets struck unspecified targets in the Khmelnytskyi region, about 180 miles west of Kyiv, the regional governor said. Attacks there have been infrequent.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, Russian forces struck several towns and villages in Donetsk province in the east over 24 hours, killing one person, authorities said. A building materials superstore in the city of Donetsk was hit by a shell and erupted in flames, the mayor said. There were no immediate reports of any injuries.
Outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson marked Ukraine’s Independence Day with a visit to Kyiv – his third since the war broke out – and other European leaders used the occasion to pledge unwavering support for Ukraine, locked in a battle that was widely expected to be a lightning conquest by Moscow but has turned into a grinding war of attrition. The US announced a major new military aid package totaling nearly $3 billion to help Ukrainian forces fight for years to come.
Independence Day commemorates Ukraine’s 1991 declaration of independence from the Soviet Union.
Kyiv authorities banned large gatherings in the capital through Thursday, fearing the national holiday might bring particularly heavy Russian missile strikes.
‘Russian provocations and brutal strikes are a possibility,’ Zelensky said in a statement. ‘Please strictly follow the safety rules. Please observe the curfew. Pay attention to the air sirens. Pay attention to official announcements.’
Nevertheless, a festive atmosphere prevailed at Kyiv’s Maidan square as thousands of residents posed for pictures next to burned-out Russian tanks put on display. Folk singers set up, and many revelers – ignoring the sirens – were out and about in traditionally embroidered dresses and shirts.
Others were fearful.
‘I can’t sleep at night because of what I see and hear about what is being done in Ukraine,’ said a retiree who gave only her first name, Tetyana, her voice shaking with emotion. ‘This is not a war. It is the destruction of the Ukrainian people.’
In a holiday message to the country, Zelensky exulted over Ukraine’s success in fending off Moscow’s forces since the invasion, saying: ‘On February 24, we were told: You have no chance. On August 24, we say: Happy Independence Day, Ukraine!’
Zelensky also addressed the UN Security Council via video over Russia’s objections and said the ‘security of the entire world’ is at stake in Ukraine’s battle against Moscow’s ‘insane aggression.’
He told representatives of about 60 states and international organisations at a virtual summit on Crimea yesterday that Ukraine would drive Russian forces out of the peninsular by any means necessary, without consulting other countries beforehand.
A small number of residents gathered in Kyiv’s central square, where destroyed Russian tanks and mobile artillery were put on display over the weekend, and the national anthem is played every day at 7am local time.
But back home, ordinary Russians are becoming more and more disillusioned with Putin’s constant barbarism and the unrelenting Kremlin war machine.
A survey by the Rosmir polling centre found only 65 per cent watch Kremlin-run stations, down from 86 per cent at the outbreak of the war, the Moscow Times reported.
Channel-1, Rossiya-1 and NT TV all tow the party line, issuing dire threats to the West and Ukraine as part of Putin’s propaganda to shore up support for his war.
Opinion polls show only 55 per cent of Russians are in favour of the invasion, compared to 66 per cent a few months ago.
Moscow restaurants numbers are at a five-month low and the cinema sector has warned it will collapse without government support as sanctions continue to bite.
US President Joe Biden said the latest American aid package will allow Ukraine to acquire air defense and artillery systems and other weapons.
‘I know this Independence Day is bittersweet for many Ukrainians as thousands have been killed or wounded, millions have been displaced from their homes, and so many others have fallen victim to Russian atrocities and attacks,’ Biden said. ‘But six months of relentless attacks have only strengthened Ukrainians’ pride in themselves, in their country, and in their 31 years of independence.’
Britain’s Johnson urged Western allies to stand by Ukraine through the winter.
‘This is not the time to put forward flimsy negotiating proposals,’ he said. ‘You can’t negotiate with a bear when it’s eating your leg or with a street robber when he has you pinned to the floor.’
In Germany, Chancellor Olaf Scholz rebuked the Kremlin for its ‘backward imperialism’ and declared that Ukraine ‘will drive away the dark shadow of war because it is strong and brave, because it has friends in Europe and all over the world.’
A car bombing outside Moscow that killed the 29-year-old daughter of right-wing Russian political theorist Alexander Dugin on Saturday also heightened fears that Russia might intensify attacks on Ukraine this week. Russian officials have blamed Ukraine for the death of Darya Dugina, a pro-Kremlin TV commentator. Ukraine has denied any involvement.
Putin’s forces have encountered unexpectedly stiff Ukrainian resistance in their invasion and abandoned their effort to storm the capital in the spring. The fighting has turned into a slog that has reduced neighborhoods to rubble and sent shock waves through the world economy.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, speaking Wednesday at a meeting of his counterparts from a security organization dominated by Russia and China, claimed the slow pace of Moscow’s military action was due to what he said was an effort to spare civilians.
Russian forces have repeatedly targeted civilian areas in cities, including hospitals and a Mariupol theater where hundreds of people were taking shelter.
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Ordinary Ukrainians are becoming more and more disillusioned with Zelensky’s constant barbarism and his unrelenting war of terror against the Ukrainian people. Scumbag Boris Johnson has told the British people that they have to accept the huge energy price increases because it is a price well worth paying to save the Jewish gangsters who rule Ukraine. Boris Johnson does more for Zelensky than he does for the British people. Ukrainian Independence Day commemorates Ukraine’s 1991 declaration of independence from the Soviet Union and its subsequent complete enslavement by the USA. If the USA were a person it would be put up against a wall and shot for benefit of the entire planet.