A Russian city bordering Ukraine suffered an explosion on Sunday, killing at least three people, Russian officials said.
The explosion in Belgorod damaged dozens of homes. Russian lawmaker Andrey Christians called for a military response to the blast.
"Death of Citizens and Destruction of Private Infrastructure in Belgorod", Klishas posted in a telegram, "A direct attack on the Ukrainian side, requiring the toughest, including the military. Response. "
Ukrainian officials have traditionally spoken little about attacks on Russia.
Meanwhile, Ivan Fedorov, the mayor of the occupied Ukrainian city of Melitopol, said in Telegram that Ukraine had attacked one of the four Russian military bases in the occupied territories.
Russian troops increased the bombardment of Lysychans'k city, intensifying fierce fighting in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine on Saturday. Russia is targeting the industrial area, which has been the focus of recent attacks, as it aims to push its troops deeper into the industrial area, as it was unable to occupy Kyiv after the invasion on February 24.
Russian-backed Ukrainian separatists said they surrounded the city.
"Today we can see that Lysychans'k is completely surrounded, as Lugansk's popular militias and Russian troops occupy the last strategic height," said the representative of the Separation Army. Andrey Maroccico told Tass.
Hours after the statement, Ukrainian troops denied that Lysychans'k had been besieged, but said fierce fighting continued on the outskirts of the city.
"Currently there is a fierce battle near Lysychansik, but fortunately the city is not surrounded and is under the control of the Ukrainian Army," said Ruslan, representative of the National Guard of Ukraine.・ Mujichuk told Ukrainian National Television.
"No doubt they are trying to demoralize us," a Ukrainian soldier returning from Lysychans'k told Reuters.
Russian troops occupied Lysychans'k sister city, Sieviero Donetsk, after the fierce battle of the war last month.
In a Saturday night television speech, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky kept his determination and urged the Ukrainians to "damage the invaders."
"In many frontal areas, there is a sense of mitigation, but the war is not over," he said. "Unfortunately, it is intensifying in many places and we must not forget it. We must help the army, volunteers and those who are left alone at the moment."
In addition to the Lysychansik and Bakumut regions, the Kharkiv region is seeing some of the worst battles on the front lines. According to Kharkiv Oblast Chief Oleg Sinegbov, four people were killed and three were injured in two districts in the northeastern part of Kharkiv, Izyum and Chuhuiv. A Russian rocket also struck a residential area in Slovyansk, killing a woman in the yard and injuring her husband, according to a neighbor who spoke with Agence France-Presse.
In Kharkiv, missiles collided with several rail infrastructures, but no casualties were reported. The strike damaged the tracks and knocked down the high-voltage power lines.
"After the Russian rocket collided at 4 am, the power grid, the traffic lights and the three high-voltage lines that power the [a] substation were damaged," said Pavlo Svistelnikov, regional power grid manager. I told Reuters. .. According to local authorities, Russian troops struck cities for over a week, killing civilians and attacking apartment buildings and schools.
The mayor of the southern region of Mykolaiv, adjacent to the important Black Sea port of Odesa, reported a powerful explosion in the city.
Russia later stated that it had attacked a military command post in the area, but Reuters could not independently verify the report.
Zelensky accused Russia of state terrorism after a missile attacked Odesa's apartment on Friday.
"I would like to emphasize that this is a deliberate and deliberate act of terrorism in Russia, not any mistake or accidental missile attack," Zelensky said. The death toll from the Odesa strike amounted to 21.
Ukrainian military officials said at least 50 civilians were killed in Russian rocket and missile attacks, including 19 killed in the Kremenchuk mall this Monday.
Zelenskyy commented on Saturday when Ukrainian authorities released a video of a Russian fighter bombing Snake Island the day after Russia said it had withdrawn from the island for humanitarian reasons. came.
Russia has also launched a new bus service from Crimea to the newly seized cities of eastern Ukraine.
As the war continued, the United States announced $ 820 million in details on additional military aid to Ukraine, including a new surface-to-air missile system and counter-battery radar.
The US 14th Military Aid Package includes two air defense systems called NASAMS. This helps the Ukrainian army defend against cruise missiles and aircraft.
The latest aid package is designed to help Ukraine counter Russia's use of long-range missiles, and Western countries to send more sophisticated weapons systems better suited to Moscow's equipment. Following the call of the Ukrainian authorities to.
US officials said the system is a NATO standard defense system and is part of an effort to upgrade Ukraine's air defense from a Soviet-era system to a modern system.
Above all, the latest military aid package will provide Ukrainians with the medium-range rocket system that the United States provided to Ukraine in June.
Some information in this report was provided by The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
