KYIC: Ukraine’s army claimed on Thursday that it had destroyed four Russian tanks on a road near the eastern city of Kharkiv and killed 50 Russian troops near a town in Luhansk region and downed a sixth Russian aircraft in the country’s east.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on all citizens who were ready to defend the country from Russian forces to come forward, saying Kyiv would issue weapons to everyone who wants them.
An adviser to Ukraine’s president says about 40 people have been killed so far amid Russia’s invasion. Oleksii Arestovich also said that several dozen people have been wounded. He did not specify whether the casualties included civilians.
However, Russia has denied reports that its aircraft or armored vehicles have been destroyed. Ukraine’s border guard service said that three of its servicemen had been killed in the southern Kherson region and that several more were wounded.
Russia launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine by land, air and sea, the biggest attack by one state against another in Europe since World War Two and confirmation of the worst fears of the West. Zelenskiy urged Russians to come out and protest against the war.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said that anyone who is ready and able to hold a weapon can join the ranks of the territorial defence forces, as the police said they would distribute weapons to veterans.
Russian forces fired missiles at several cities in Ukraine and landed troops on its coast on Thursday after President Vladimir Putin authorized a special military operation in the east.
Zelenskyy has broken off Kyiv’s diplomatic relations with Moscow in response to Russia’s invasion. The Ukrainian president’s move marked the first rupture in ties since Russia and Ukraine became independent countries after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991.
