Russia Ukraine war breaking news: Putin launches new attacks on Kiev as explosions rock Ukrainian cities

Air raid alerts were sounded for all of Ukraine in the early hours of today and the military warned of possible Russian missile strikes in a wide arc stretching from Kiev to central regions and south.

Even an hour after the warnings were issued, residents of Kiev were asked to remain in shelters by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Telegram channel. Warnings were issued for a number of other regions, including Zhytomyr west of the capital and Kirovohrad, Cherkassy and Dnipropetrovsk in central Ukraine.

People in Kiev reported hearing anti-aircraft units in action. There were also reports of explosions in other major cities, but it was uncertain whether these were due to missile strikes or anti-aircraft activity.

The warnings also extended north of Kiev and in the south and west to Vinnystia, Khmelnitskyi and Chernivtsi regions.

Other Telegram channels warned of possible strikes in the central Poltava region and further south in the Mykolaiv region.

In a statement posted on Telegram, the region’s Russian-backed governor Sergei Aksyonov said wagons loaded with grain had derailed and there were no injuries in the explosion in Crimea.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Japan will receive wounded Ukrainian soldiers at a Tokyo hospital run by its military, a senior member of Japan’s ruling coalition said on Thursday.

It would be the first time the Self-Defense Force Central Hospital has treated foreign soldiers, a lawmaker said Reutersrequests anonymity because the deal is not yet public.

Details will be decided at a meeting between Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada and Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky later Thursday, but the costs are likely to be borne primarily by the Japanese side, the lawmaker said.

Rail traffic has been suspended between Simferopol, the capital of the Crimean peninsula, and the city of Sevastopol, a Russian-based official in the area said on Thursday.

Earlier, the Baza Telegram channel, which has links to Russian security services, had reported an explosion on a railway line in the region, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

The Russian state is likely to ban senior officials from resigning from their jobs while the “special military operation” continues, Britain’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) said today.

“The measures are likely to extend to at least regional leaders, security officials and members of the powerful presidential administration,” it said.

It added: “In private circles in Russia, many officials are likely to be highly skeptical of the war, as well as often experiencing work stress within the dysfunctional wartime apparatus. The ban is likely to be enforced with strong hints that those who have resigned will face trumped-up criminal charges.”

“In addition to being concerned about capability gaps that departures would leave, the authorities are also likely trying to prevent any impression of defeatism and to strengthen a sense of collective responsibility for the war,” the ministry argued.

Falling debris during an air raid sparked two fires in the eastern districts of Kiev, officials said today.

A fire had broken out in a garage facility in the Darnitsya region of the capital and debris also fell in the Dnipro region of Kyiv, Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said. He added that there were no injuries from either incident.

The head of Kiev’s military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on Telegram that a fire had broken out in non-residential premises in the Desnyansky district, just east of the capital. He did not provide information on injuries.

Ukraine, it claims, still holds onto a large area of ​​Bakhmut after retaking some from Russian troops and continuing to advance in some parts.

“Almost 20 square kilometers liberated in the suburbs in recent days have not been lost. We are moving forward. We are moving forward in some areas,” says Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar.

However, she added that “fierce fighting” was still going on in the area, and Russian troops were also advancing.

China and Ukraine agreed that they should work together to maintain their mutual respect and continue their mutually beneficial cooperation going forward, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said today.

“China has always played a constructive role in alleviating the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way and will continue to provide assistance to Ukraine within its capacity,” the foreign ministry said.

The statement comes after China’s Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui met with the President of Ukraine.

At least one person was killed by a Russian missile attack on an industrial facility in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa today.

Two more people were injured in the Odesa attack, military administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk wrote on Telegram.

Officials said falling debris during an air raid sparked two fires in the eastern districts of Kiev.

Kiev was attacked with cruise missiles for the second night in a row, but all were shot down by air defenses, said the head of Kiev’s military administration, Serhiy Popko.