Russian missiles fell on Ukraine, West promised permanent support

by Pavel Polityuk

Kyiv (Reuters) – Russian forces attacked targets in southern Ukraine’s Mykolaiv region on Wednesday, intensifying attacks on fronts across the country as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Western military alliance met in Madrid to plan a route. Action against the Moscow challenge.

The mayor of Mykolaiv said a Russian missile attack on a residential building had killed at least three people, and Moscow said its forces had hit what it called a training base for foreign mercenaries in the area.

In the east, the governor of the Luhansk province said there was “warfare everywhere” in the battle around the city of Lysychansk, which Russian troops were trying to besiege.

The governor of Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine said that Russian bombings have also increased in recent days.

“A few villages have been wiped out from the face of the earth,” said Oleksander Vilkul, governor of Kryvyi Rih.

The intensified attacks come after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces made slow but relentless progress in a conflict in its fifth month, and a missile strike from Ukraine on Monday killed at least 18 people in the city centre.

However, while Western analysts say the Russians are suffering heavy losses and depleting resources, the prospect of supplying more Western weapons to Ukraine, including long-range missile systems, made Moscow need to consolidate any gains.

Away from the conflict, leaders of NATO countries met in Madrid, Spain, to discuss policies in response to Russia’s actions and any Chinese threat.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the members of the military alliance will supply weapons to Ukraine as long as necessary.

US President Joe Biden said at the summit that the US is expanding the presence of its forces in Europe based on threats from Russia.

NATO is also expected to overcome Turkey’s objections and invite Sweden and Finland to become members.

Russia has long complained about the perception of expansion towards the borders of the Western blocs, but its invasion of Ukraine – what it calls a “special military operation” – gave NATO new impetus. The European Union also gave Ukraine candidate status to join the bloc due to the occupation.