Fighting continues as Russia, Ukraine expected to hold second round of peace talks
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Firefighters work at a damaged residential building at Koshytsa Street, a suburb of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where a military shell allegedly hit,
Moscow/Kiev: Ahead of the new round of peace talks that are likely to resume today, latest reports reveal that fighting continues as Russia's 'special military operation' in Ukraine has entered the seventh day.
Russian airborne troops have landed in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv, reported news agency AFP, quoting the Ukrainian army. The army alleged that the troops attacked a local hospital and the fight is ongoing. The city mayor said at least 21 people were killed and 112 wounded in shelling in the last 24 hours.
Ukraine's State Emergency Services has launched a helpline on WhatsApp to send people information and critical news about the local situation and safety measures as Russia stepped up assaults on Day 7 of its invasion.
On Tuesday, Russian forces bombarded the Freedom Square in Kharkiv, which is the centre of public life in the city.
An Indian student, Naveen, was also killed in Russian shelling in Kharkiv on Tuesday.
In capital Kyiv, Russian forces striked at the TV tower, which led to Ukrainian TV channels going off air shortly. Five people were killed in the shelling, according to news agency AFP.
Russia looks to further upscale its assault on Ukrainian cities as satellite images released by US satellite company Maxar showed a 40-mile (64-kilometer) convoy of Russian tanks and other vehicles along a highway to the north advancing towards Kyiv.
The Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told a regular briefing on Tuesday that the country would strike the information warfare and psychological operation center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces as well as technological facilities of the Ukrainian Security Service in Kiev with high-precision weapons.
Meanwhile, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu vowed to continue the military operation in Ukraine until achieving the main goal of defending Russia from Western threats.
"The main thing for us is to protect Russia from the military threat posed by Western countries that are trying to use the Ukrainian people in the fight against our country," Shoigu said during a video conference with senior defence officials.
Since the military operation started on Thursday, the Russian Armed Forces had destroyed 1,325 Ukrainian military infrastructure objects, Konashenkov said.
In addition, 395 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles, 59 multiple launch rocket systems, 179 field artillery guns and mortars as well as 286 units of special military vehicles had been destroyed, he added.
The access of Ukrainian troops to the Sea of Azov had been completely blocked, Konashenkov told reporters.
Amid the deadly conflict, Russian and Ukrainian delegations held on Monday their first round of negotiations in search of a solution to the crisis in Belarus' Gomel region, with no clear breakthrough.
The second round of the peace talks could reportedly take place on Wednesday, TASS news agency reported citing sources.