KYIV / KHARKIV, Ukraine, March 3 (Reuters) – Russian troops in the Ukrainian city of Kherson are forcing their way into a council building, the mayor said after a day of controversial claims about Moscow’s first profit. the city in its attack that began eight days ago.
The attack on Moscow by its neighbor has not yet overthrown the government in Kyiv but thousands are thought to be dead or injured and could cause further deep-seated economic damage from the coronavirus.
A major European invasion since 1945 has caused more than 870,000 people to flee, which has led to sanctions against Russia, and has sparked fears of widespread unrest in Western countries.
The Black Sea port of Kherson, the southernmost capital of the province with a population of about 250,000, is located at the mouth of the Dnipro River and may be the first important city to fall into the hands of Moscow.
Russia’s defense ministry said Wednesday morning it had captured Kherson but a few hours later Presidential adviser Volodymyr Zelenskiy responded that the Ukrainian side was still defending the area.
Late Wednesday, Mayor Igor Kolykhayev said Russian troops were on the streets.
“There were armed guests at the city council today,” he said in a statement. “My team and I are a peaceful people – we were unarmed and there was no violence on our part.”
“I did not make any promises to them … I just asked them not to shoot people,” he wrote.
Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a “special mission” that is not designed to take place but to undermine the neighboring military power and seize what it sees as dangerous nationalist extremists. It denies directing citizens.