Russia launched more than 1,000 missiles at targets in Ukraine
A senior US Defense Department official said Russia has launched more than 1,080 missiles at targets in Ukraine since the start of its special operation in the country.
|
| Smoke rises from an area hit by an attack in Lviv. Photo: AP |
CNN news agency quoted this official as saying that despite having an advantage in the number of air weapons, Russia still does not have an advantage in the skies over Ukraine. Previously,Ministry of Defense of UkraineThe Russian military used Kalibr cruise missiles and Iskander tactical missile systems to attack the country, it said.
According to AP news agency, Russian troops are still pouring fire on Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kiev and an aircraft repair facility in Lviv, near the border with Poland.
The besieged port city of Mariupol has lost access to the Sea of Azov and Russian forces are still attacking the area, Ukrainian officials said late on March 18. It was not immediately clear whether Russian forces had taken control of Mariupol, a key commercial port on the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the much wider Black Sea by a narrow strait.
French President Emmanuel Macron yesterday asked Russian President Putin to lift the siege of Mariupol, allow humanitarian corridors and immediately cease fire.
The French and Russian leaders had a 70-minute phone call, the French presidential office said. Earlier in the day, President Putin spoke by phone with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and received a request for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, a top US commander in the Middle East said there was no sign that Russia was moving troops from Syria to reinforce its forces in Ukraine.
US General Frank McKenzie told reporters that he saw little change in Russia's military activities in Syria.
