Three days after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv reported 352 civilian casualties on Sunday, out of which 14 were children. Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said 1,684 people were injured, including 116 children. On the same day, Ukrainian armed forces managed to ward off intense waves of assault from Russian troops in capital Kyiv and Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv.
On Saturday, Russian Defence Ministry spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov confirmed that the military had received orders to attack Kyiv from all directions over the Ukrainian government’s “refusal to negotiate.” Satellite images showed a Russian deployment, longer than 5 kilometres, approaching Kyiv on Sunday—an indication of Russia’s intensification of the attack. Konashenkov promised to provide safe passage to residents of Kyiv, a city with a population of more than 3 million. However, Ukrainians in Kyiv were able to thwart Russia’s onslaught, with the capital’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, claiming that there were no Russian troops in the city.
The Governor of Kharkiv, Oleg Sinegubov, reported that Ukrainian armed forces had managed to repel Russia’s attack, confirming that “Kharkiv is fully under our control.” Sinegubov said the Russian troops were “demoralised,” with dozens surrendering and abandoning their vehicles in the middle of the road. According to the United States (US), Ukraine’s “creative” resistance has severely impeded Russia’s plans to grab the country’s two largest cities in a blitz.
The Russians made progress in the south of Ukraine with naval support from the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, with forces managing to capture part of Kherson—a city at Dnieper River. However, they were unable to gain control of the port city of Mariupol.
Estimated losses of the enemy (as for 6 a.m. 28.02)
— KyivPost (@KyivPost) February 28, 2022
29 planes
191 tanks
74 cannons
291 vehicles
21 multiple-launch rocket systems (Grad)
3 unmanned aircraft
29 helicopters
816 armored personnel carriers
5 air defense systems
60 tankers
2 ships/boats
5300 personnel (est.)
Ukraine has claimed that it has killed 4,300 Russian troops. For the first time since the invasion, Russia admitted on Sunday that its troops were “killed and injured” without giving an exact number. The Russian Defence Ministry has so far only confirmed the death of one soldier—the head of the North Caucasus region of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov.
Furthermore, the Russian army has said that it has neutralised 975 Ukrainian military facilities and shot down eight fighter jets, seven helicopters and 11 drones. Likewise, Ukraine claimed to have downed hundreds of Russian armoured vehicles, and more than a hundred tanks. Ukraine’s Defence Ministry added that its Stinger air defence system took down seven Russian helicopters.
Amid the increasing fatalities, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry announced the launch of “200rf.com,” a website containing photos, documents, and videos of fallen and captured Russian soldiers. A Ukrainian official said that the purpose of the site was to notify Russian citizens about the status of their soldiers. “We decided to put this online so that each of you could search for your loved one who Putin sent to fight in Ukraine,” the official added.
Experts suggest that despite Russia’s slow start, it will eventually overwhelm Ukraine. Against this backdrop, leaders from the West, along with Ukraine and Russia, are under considerable pressure to hold talks.