Three Casualties and Seventeen Injuries in Ukraine Following Russian Offensives, Spain Voices Solidarity with Kyiv from Europe

Ukrainian authorities reported on Saturday morning of civilian losses due to Russian artillery fire in the eastern and southern parts of the country. The report comes as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is visiting Kyiv, expressing Madrid’s and the European Union’s steadfast support for Ukraine in its struggle to eject Russian intruders from its lands.

Sánchez, during a speech that earned several standing ovations in the Ukrainian parliament, stated, “We will stand by your side for as long as needed.”

He went on to communicate the unwavering stance of the European Union and Europe as a whole against Russia’s unlawful and unwarranted aggression towards Ukraine. Sánchez’s visit coincided with the day Spain assumed the EU’s rotating six-month presidency.

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Sánchez is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with a joint press conference scheduled for Saturday afternoon.

In other parts of Ukraine, local officials reported that Russian artillery fire led to a minimum of three civilian deaths and 17 injuries on Friday and during the night. Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported on Saturday that three individuals had lost their lives and another ten had been injured during Friday’s confrontations in the Donetsk region in the east, where intense warfare is ongoing.

The Ukrainian General Staff informed that rigorous skirmishes continue in three Donetsk areas where it reported a build-up of Russian troops attempting to make headway. As per their recent social media update, the General Staff mentioned the outskirts of Bakhmut, Lyman, and Marinka as intense conflict zones and reported unsuccessful Russian assaults in these areas in the past day.

In the southern Kherson region, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported five casualties, including a child, due to Friday’s and overnight Russian bombardment. According to Prokudin, Russian forces conducted 82 attacks in the province using artillery, drones, mortars, and rockets. This region is still struggling to recover from recent flood damage caused by the destruction of a major Dnipro river dam, and it lies divided by a 1,500-kilometer (930 miles) front line.

In the northeastern region of Kharkiv, a 57-year-old civilian man was injured due to Russian artillery fire on the previous day, according to local Governor Oleh Syniehubov. Further west in the Sumy region, a teenager was injured by a strike from the Russian border, as reported by the local military administration.

Speaking about potential peace negotiations, the Spanish Prime Minister stated, “Only Ukraine has the authority to dictate the conditions and timeline for peace talks. We appreciate the peace plan proposals from other countries and regions, but we can’t accept them in their entirety.

This is an aggressive war with a clear aggressor and victim. They cannot be treated on equal footing, and rule-breaking should not be rewarded. That’s why we are backing President Zelensky’s approach to peace,” concluded Sánchez.

Madrid-based Ciarán Giles contributed to this report.

Keep up with the AP’s coverage of the war at https://bigbignews.net/russia-ukraine.

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More about Russian Attacks in Ukraine

• Russia’s aggression in Ukraine
• EU Support for Ukraine
• Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s visit to Ukraine
• Current condition in Donetsk
• Impact of the destruction of the Dnipro river dam
• President Zelensky’s approach to peace