Russia continues to bombard cities across Ukraine

Residents watch a burning building after an air strike hit residences in Kramatorsk on Tuesday. Pic/AFP

Russian forces kept up their bombardment of cities across Ukraine, with intense shelling of Sumy in the north, cluster bombs targeting Mykolaiv and a missile strike in Odesa in the south, authorities said on Tuesday. After failing to capture Kyiv at the outset of the invasion, Russia has shifted to a campaign of devastating bombardments to cement and extend control of Ukraine's south and east.

Ukraine says Russian forces have intensified long-distance strikes on targets far from the front, killing large numbers of civilians. Moscow said it is hitting military targets. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had fired more than 3,000 cruise missiles and uncountable artillery shells during the five-month conflict.

The strike in Odesa injured at least four people while cluster shell strikes in Mykolaiv injured two. More than 150 mines and shells were fired on Sumy, said Ukraine authorities. Ukraine said Russian troops tried to advance towards the city of Avdiyivka, but were pushed back after several days, suffering heavy losses, some 40 dead.

This week could be pivotal for European countries concerned about war and sanctions on gas supplies. Russia is due to reopen its main natural gas pipeline to Germany, Nord Stream 1, i after regular maintenance, but Europeans are worried Moscow amy keep it closed.

Putin visits Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin was to visit Tehran on Tuesday for talks with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Kremlin leader's first trip outside the former Soviet Union since Moscow's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. In Tehran, Putin will also hold his first face-to-face meeting since the invasion with a NATO leader, Turkey's Tayyip Erdogan, to discuss a deal aimed at allowing resumption of Ukraine's Black Sea grain exports as well as peace in Syria.

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