Ukraine updates: Deadly airstrike hits Kharkiv
Published March 27, 2024last updated March 28, 2024
What you need to know
Ukrainian authorities have said the city of Kharkiv was hit by a Russian strike. Police said it was the first use of aerial bombs on the city since 2022.
At least one person was killed and a dozen more injured in the attack, which hit a residential building.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with soldiers fighting on the frontline in the northeastern region of Sumy.
Here are the main headlines from Russia's war in Ukraine on Wednesday, 27 March:
Czechs sanction Medvedchuk and Russian propaganda site
The Czech government has sanctioned pro-Russian Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk and the news website voiceofeurope.com for leading a pro-Moscow influence operation in Europe, the Czech Foreign Ministry said.
The website is part of a Russian influence operation aimed at challenging the territorial integrity, sovereignty and freedom of Ukraine, the Czech ministry said.
Behind it is oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk, the ministry added, a former Ukrainian lawmaker who was charged with treason in Ukraine but handed over to Russia in a prisoner swap in 2022.
Medvedchuk, who is considered a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was also personally added to the sanctions list, the Czech ministry said.
EU envoys agree on compromise to extend Ukrainian agricultural imports
Representatives from the EU's member states reached an agreement to extend a deal to import agricultural products from Ukraine tariff-free.
The Belgian presidency of the EU said the deal secured "a balanced approach between support for Ukraine and protection of EU agricultural markets."
The EU initiated the tariff-free imports after Russia invaded Ukraine in order to allow the country to country to sell its vital agricultural goods, but the influx of Ukrainian imports angered some eastern European producers who said that local prices had been pushed down.
Wednesday's deal is an attempt to resolve this problem. An earlier version of the deal had said that tariffs would kick in once imports of poultry, eggs, sugar, oats, maize, groats and honey reached the average levels of 2022/2023.
Following pushback, this was extended to include the second semester of 2021, Reuters news agency reported citing an unnamed EU diplomat.
The European Parliament still has to approve the new deal.
Ukraine calls for more Patriot missiles to beef up its defense
Kyiv has made renewed calls for its backers to send more shipments of Patriot missiles as the country fends off a new wave of Russian airstrikes.
"The peculiarity of the current Russian attacks is the intensive use of ballistic missiles that can reach targets at extremely high speeds, leaving little time for people to take cover and causing significant destruction," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said during an online press conference.
"Patriot and other similar systems are defensive by definition. They are designed to protect lives, not take them," he added.
Russian forces fired 190 rockets of various types, 140 drones and 700 guided bombs from March 18 through 24 alone.
Kuleba said ballistic missiles that climb up to a high altitude and then fall straight down to Earth were especially dangerous.
"They can hit targets at particularly high speeds, leaving people little time to seek shelter and causing immense damage," he said.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also called for more Patriot missiles, along with warplanes, to defend against Russian aerial attacks.
"Bolstering Ukraine's air defense and expediting the delivery of F-16s to Ukraine are vital tasks. There are no rational explanations for why Patriots, which are plentiful around the world, are still not covering the skies of Kharkiv and other cities," Zelensky said in a post on social media.
Ukraine has warned that Russia is preparing for a major summer offensive while it waits on a $60 billion (€55.5 billion) aid package from the United States that has been held up for months by Congress.
Zelenskyy visits troops on the front line
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited defensive forces on the front line in the northeastern region of Sumy on Wednesday, his office reported.
"I inspected trenches, dugouts, firing and command and observation posts. We are strengthening our defenses," Zelenskyy said during the visit.
He met with the commander of the 117th Separate Territorial Defense Brigade, with whom he spoke about the number of troops, equipment and weapons.
He also expressed his gratitude to the soldiers stationed there.
"Thank you for defending Ukraine, our sovereignty and territorial integrity. I wish you and your families' health and, of course, victory. Our future depends on it," the president said.
Ukraine says Russia hit Kharkiv with aerial bombs
Ukraine said on Wednesday that Russian forces had hit a residential building in the eastern city of Kharkiv.
"A five-story building where people lived was badly damaged," Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov said on the Telegram messaging app, adding that the "institute of emergency surgery was also damaged."
Authorities said at least one person was killed and a dozen others were injured. Regional Governor Oleh Synehubov said four children were among the wounded on Telegram.
Synehubov said that Russia had used a guided missile. Local police later said the attack had been carried out with aerial bombs.
"Kharkiv was hit by aerial bombs — for the first time since 2022," Serhiy Bolvinov, the head of the investigative department of the regional police, said on Facebook.
ab/wd (Reuters, AFP, dpa, AP)