Russia-Ukraine Live: At Least 902 Civilians Killed in Ukraine, Says UN
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At least 902 civilians have been killed and 1,459 injured in Ukraine as of midnight local time on Sunday, 20 March, the United Nations has said, Reuters reported.
This came as Russian forces continued to advance deeper into Ukraine's Mariupol on Saturday, leading to thousands of people fleeing the port city.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that if Russia did not take steps in the direction of peace, his country would require generations to recover from losses incurred during the war.
According to the Parliament of Ukraine, around 115 children have been killed in Ukraine since the start of Russian invasion and 140 more have been injured.
Meanwhile, Ukraine, on Saturday, asked China to join the West in condemning "Russian barbarism."
Nine people were killed and 17 wounded after Russian shelling targeted the suburbs of the city of Zaporizhzhia
At least 902 civilians have been killed and 1,459 injured in Ukraine as of midnight local time on Sunday, according to UN
During the 14th India-Japan Annual Summit on Saturday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tokyo would continue to support Ukraine
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Ukraine Asks China To Condemn 'Russian Barbarism'
Ukraine, on Saturday, 20 March, asked China to join the West in condemning "Russian barbarism."
Presidential aide Mikhailo Podolyak took to Twitter to say:
"The West must explain to Beijing how $1.6 trillion differs from $150 billion," he added.
Japanese PM Continues To Support Ukraine
During the 14th India-Japan Annual Summit on Saturday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tokyo would continue to support Ukraine.
He added: "No permission should be given by one side to change the status quo in world order by use of force."
UK PM Compares Ukraine War to Brexit
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has garnered widespread criticism after he compared the ongoing war in Ukraine to Brexit, a media report said on Sunday.
In a speech, Johnson had said that Britons, like Ukrainians, had the instinct "to choose freedom" and cited the 2016 vote to leave the European Union as an example, BBC reported.
China Stands on the Right Side of History: FM Wang Yi
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that China stood on the right side of history with regard to the Ukraine crisis, and that its position was in line with the wishes of most countries, Reuters reported.
"China will never accept any external coercion or pressure, and opposes any unfounded accusations and suspicious against China," Yi said.
It Will Take Russia Generations To Recover From the War, Says Zelenskyy
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasised the importance of comprehensive peace talks with Moscow in a video address.
He also said that if Russia did not take steps in the direction of peace, the country would require generations to recover from losses during the war.
Ukraine Holding 562 Russian POWs
Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said that Kyiv was "officially" holding 562 Russian soldiers in its custody.
"All Russian prisoners are treated in accordance with international human rights law," she added.
71 Children Rescued From Sumy Orphanage
As many as 71 children have been evacuated from an orphanage in the Ukrainian city of Sumy, an official said, as per a report by Reuters.
"We were hiding these children in bomb shelters for almost two weeks. Those who can shelter them in a safe place in another country were found quickly, thank God. And with the first opportunity to evacuate through the humanitarian corridor, we took the children from a specialized orphanage out of the combat zone," Dmytro Zhyvytskyy, head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration, said.
Ukrainians Flee Mariupol As Russian Troops Make Inroads
Russian forces advanced deeper into Ukraine's Mariupol on Saturday, leading to thousands of people fleeing the port city.
"Children, elderly people are dying. The city is destroyed and it is wiped off the face of the Earth," Michail Vershnin, a Mariupol police officer, said in a video addressed to Western governments, AP reported.
'Russia Forcefully Deported Thousands From Mariupol'
The Mariupol city council said that Russian forces forcefully deported thousands of people from the the Ukrainian port city last week.
"Over the past week, several thousand Mariupol residents were deported onto the Russian territory," the council said in a statement on Saturday.
Russia's Actions in Mariupol Will Be Remembered as War Crimes, Zelenskyy Says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russia’s siege of Mariupol was “a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come”, Reuters reported.
In a broadcast, Zelenskyy said that the siege of the port city would “go down in history of responsibility for war crimes”.
“To do this to a peaceful city... is a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come,” he added.
Zelenskyy Suspends Parties With Russian Ties
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ordered the suspension of activities of 11 political parties with links to Russia, Reuters reported.
The largest of them is the Opposition Platform for Life, which has 44 out of 450 seats in the country’s Parliament.
The party is led by Viktor Medvedchuk. Russian President Vladimir Putin is the godfather of Medvedchuk's daughter.
Russian Forces Bomb Mariupol Art School Sheltering Civilians
The city council of Mariupol said that Russian shelling has struck a Mariupol art school where 400 residents were sheltering.
In their statement posted on the Telegram, the Mariupol council said people could still be inside under the rubble, and the extent and possibility of casualties was unclear, Associated Press reported.
National TV Channels in Ukraine to be Combined into 1 Platform
As per a statement by the office of Ukrainian president Zelenskyy, a decree combining all national TV channels into one platform has been signed, citing the importance of a “unified information policy” under martial law, Reuters reported.
One of Europe's Biggest Steel Plants Damaged in Mariupol
Amidst Russian's onslaught in Mariupol, Azovstal, one of Europe's biggest iron and steel works plant, was badly damaged, officials said Sunday, AFP reported.
Ukrainian lawmaker Lesia Vasylenko took to Twitter to say, "One of the biggest metallurgic plants in Europe destroyed. The economic losses for Ukraine are huge. The environment is devastated."
The lawmakers posted a visual of explosions on the site, capturing thick columns of grey and black smoke rising from the buildings.
115 Children Killed, 140 Injured Due to Russia's Invasion
According to the report by The Kyiv Independent, the Parliament of Ukraine has said that around 115 children have been killed in Ukraine since the start of Russian invasion and 140 more have been injured.
14,700 Troops Among Russia's Losses Till 20 March: Ukraine
The Ukraine Armed Forces indicated the estimated losses, including 14,700 troops, incurred by Russia as of 20 March, the Kyiv Independent reported.
Troops, Patriot Air Defence Systems Move into Slovakia
Slovakia's Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad on Sunday said that the first multinational NATO units with the Patriot air defense systems have been moving to the country, in a bid to protect Slovak territory amidst the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The troops are from the 2,100 soldiers belonging to NATO nations, who will form a battlegroup on Slovak territory as the alliance heightens its defences, AP reported.
Germany and the Netherlands have agreed to send their troops armed with the Patriots to Slovakia.
10 Million People Have Fled Homes in Ukraine: UNHCR
Ten million people have fled their homes in Ukraine amidst the Russian onslaught, the United Nations' refugee angency said on Sunday, 20 March, AFP reported.
The UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi stated, "The war in Ukraine is so devastating that 10 million have fled either displaced inside the country, or as refugees abroad."
At Least 902 Civilians Killed, 1,459 Injured in Ukraine
The UN human rights office has indicated that at least 902 civilians have been killed and 1,459 injured in Ukraine as of midnight local time on Sunday, Reuters reported.
As per the report, most of the deaths have resulted from explosive weapons such as shelling from heavy artillery, multiple-launch rocket systems and missile and air strikes amidst the Russian assault on Ukrainian territory.
'If Negotiations With Putin Fail, It Would Mean 3rd World War': Zelenskyy
Ukraine president Volodymr Zelenskyy spoke to CNN, warning that only direct negotiations with Russia would end the war in his country, and if not, it would mean a third world war.
“I’m ready for negotiations. I was ready for the last two years. And without negotiations we cannot end this war,” he stated, adding that "we have to use any format, any chance, in order to have the possibility of negotiating the possibility of talking to Putin. But if these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third world war."
CNN’s Fareed Zakaria had asked Zelenskyy if he was ready to negotiate with the Russian leader Vladimir Putin.