Russian shelling of a market in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Kherson killed six people and wounded six others on Tuesday, as new Nato general secretary Mark Rutte said support for Kyiv would continue to be a priority for the alliance.
“A Russian strike on Kherson, right in the city centre ... Daily Russian terror, daily attempts to destroy life — all this can be stopped,” said Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
“We must achieve lasting peace for our state and our people. For this to happen, Ukrainian strength and the resolve of our partners must outweigh [Russia’s] desire to wreak terror. Pressure on the aggressor and support for Ukraine must be constant and comprehensive,” he added.
Kherson officials urged people to stay indoors due to fears of more shelling from the opposite, eastern bank of the Dnipro river, which is occupied by Russian forces. Footage from the market showed the bloodstained bodies of elderly civilians lying among shattered glass, splintered wood and fruit and vegetables covered in debris.
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Vadym Filashkin, governor of Kyiv-controlled parts of the eastern Donetsk region, said Russian forces were advancing in the almost abandoned town of Vuhledar.
“The enemy has already almost reached the centre of the town,” he told Ukrainian television. “One hundred and seven people are still in Vuhledar. Fortunately, all the children have already been evacuated from there. Fighting is taking place within the city limits, so it is almost impossible to deliver humanitarian aid,” he added.
Mr Zelenskiy said the situation on the frontline was “very challenging” and that “the most important thing is to put pressure on Russia using all available means and tools to achieve our goal of a real and just peace for Ukraine ... as soon as possible.
“Everything that can be done this autumn, everything we can achieve, we must achieve ... Now we have to work as hard as we can before Ramstein,” he added, referring to a meeting on October 12th of dozens of states that supply arms to Ukraine.
Mr Rutte, a former Dutch prime minister, said one of his top priorities as Nato’s new chief was to “step up our support for Ukraine and bring it ever closer to Nato. Because there can be no lasting security in Europe without a strong, independent Ukraine.”
He said Nato states must deliver on pledges to provide weapons to Kyiv and to ensure “Ukraine’s irreversible path to membership. And we must sustain this support into the future. Because Ukraine’s rightful place is in Nato … And the cost of supporting Ukraine is far, far lower than the cost we would face if we allow [Russia] to get [its] way.”
The Kremlin says it will never accept Ukraine becoming a Nato member.
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