Air raid alert issued as ‘nobody’ Putin launches missile attack – lvie

Ukrainian officials have declared an air raid alert across the country, including in Kyiv, following the threat of a major missile attack by Russian forces.

Odesa Oblast Governor Maksym Marchenko remarked that Russian military was “preparing to launch a massive missile attack on Ukraine with the use of aircraft and ships.”

On the Telegram messaging app, Mykolaiv governor Vitaly Kim stated that two missiles were spotted over Ukraine. Officials ordered the public to take shelter.

“Missiles are flying inside the territory of Ukraine. At least two northwest through Mykolaiv region,” he said.

Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak has now confirmed that the first Russian missiles had been shot down.

The military said that its anti-aircraft defences had shot down all 24 drones sent by Russia overnight.

DTEK, Ukraine’s largest energy producer, also stated that it was conducting emergency power shutdowns in Kyiv, the surrounding region, and the regions of Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk as a result of the threat of a missile attack.

In an interview with Sky News, President Zelensky was asked about the prospect of peace talks with Putin.

He was not optimistic about talks with “nobody” Putin, but he did outline the conditions under which he believed that negotiations could begin.

“They don’t want talks and this was the case before the invasion,” he told Kay Burley.

“President Putin decided so. I am convinced that Ukraine is just the first step for him.

“I am convinced that he is waging a big war.

“We hope that once Russia pulls its troops back to their territory, they will admit their big mistakes and there will be a new government in the Russian Federation.

“We are neighbours. It will only be then that we will be resolving this situation.

“Then, probably, talks will be possible.”

Western countries have made “no clear indication” of how many tanks will be given to Ukraine, an advisor to the country’s defence minister has said.

Yuriy Sak told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “We need 300 to 400 tanks for this to be a game changer.

“This tank coalition consisting of different countries, we have no clear indication of how many tanks each country will provide. We have communicated to our partners that this is the number that we need.

“If you want missile terror to stop you need to receive the weapons that will allow us to defeat the enemy on the battlefield.

“The sooner we defeat Russia on the battlefield using Western weapons the sooner we will be able to stop this missile terror and restore peace.”

Volodymyr Zelensky has declined to say whether Boris Johnson should get an official role representing the UK on Ukraine.

He laughed at the suggestion in an interview with Sky News, appearing to indicate that Mr Johnson might not be ready for such a role.

“He is good guy,” he said. “Who knows? With pleasure, with pleasure, really.”

Asked if he would support another bid by Mr Johnson to become PM, Mr Zelensky said: “I think that is not correct for me to support Johnson to be prime minister.

“We have good relations with Sunak. I think we had more long relations with Johnson, because it was more long-time.

“I saw Johnson in different situations, I saw him not in war and then in full-scale war, that’s why we have special relations.”

In an exclusive interview with Sky News, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky remarked that he “doesn’t understand who makes decisions in Russia.” Moscow asks for peace, but it attacks Ukraine with missiles,  he furthered.

Zelensky dismissed the idea of peace talks with Putin, telling Kay Burley: “It is not interesting for me. Not interesting to meet, not interesting to speak… I really don’t understand who makes decisions in Russia.”

He added that “After a full-scale invasion, for me [Mr Putin] is nobody.”

He also confirmed that the Ukrainian people are his priority, adding: “I don’t want to fight on Russian territory.

“I just want them to stop the war as quickly as possible, and leave our country as fast as possible.

“I can tell you for sure if they leave our territory, the war will stop. That’s all.”

A Twitter meme video has made light of Western allies sending in new tanks to help Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.

Created by user @SecretNofun, the clip shows three men who are labelled as Challenger 2, Abrams and Leopard 2 tanks dancing to “Be My Lover” by La Bouche.

The US is expected to send 30 M1 Abrams tanks, while Berlin will supply 14 Leopard 2 tanks from military stocks as a first step, alongside the UK’s 14 Challenger 2 tanks.

For months, US officials balked at sending M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, insisting they were too complicated and too hard to maintain and repair.

Yesterday, that abruptly changed. Ukraine’s desperate pleas for tanks were answered with a sweeping, trans-Atlantic yes.

The dramatic reversal was the culmination of intense international pressure and diplomatic arm-twisting that played out over the last week. And it resulted in a quick succession of announcements: The US said it will send 31 of the 70-ton Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine, and Germany announced it will send 14 Leopard 2 tanks and allow other countries to do the same.

A look at the massive battle weapon, why it is important to Ukraine’s war with Russia, and what drove the Biden administration’s tank turnabout:

Ukraine has declared an air raid alert over most of the country this morning, and regional authorities warned of a possible missile attack.

The DTEK electricity company said it was performing emergency shutdowns of electro power in the capital Kyiv, the rest of the Kyiv region, and also the regions of Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk due to a danger of missile attack.

Ukraine has declared an air raid alert over most of country, with the authorities warning of a possible imminent missile attack.

Chancellor Scholz and his colleagues deserve the thanks of the whole world for their contribution to the security of independent nations everywhere.

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