At least six people were injured Monday, while houses, cars and businesses were damaged by three Russian-guided bombs on Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv, the city’s Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram.

Terekhov said that there may be people still under the rubble following the attack on Ukraine’s second largest city.

Kharkiv and the surrounding region have long been the target of Russian attacks but recently the strikes have become more intense, hitting civilians and the region’s energy grid.

Russia denies deliberately targeting civilians, but thousands have been killed and injured during its invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine’s military said it damaged three Russian surface-to-air defense systems overnight Sunday into Monday in missile attacks on the Moscow-occupied Crimea peninsula.

Citing Ukraine’s general staff, Reuters news agency reported the attacks struck an S-400 system in Dzhankoi and two less advanced S-300 systems near Yevpatoriya and Chornomorske resulting in “significant losses” for Russian air defenses.

Reuters could not independently verify the statement.

There was no immediate comment from the Russian defense ministry. Local Telegram channels reported explosions near Dzhankoi and Yevpatoriya.

The Russian defense ministry said Monday its forces have retaken control of the village of Staromaiorske in Ukraine’s Donetsk region.

Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports.

During his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that the situation in Donetsk is difficult. “The occupier’s pressure there is the greatest,” he said, noting that Russia conducted more than 40 attacks Sunday and more than 20 Monday. “We are making every effort to ensure that you and our entire army have more weapons, more equipment, and more modern systems,” Zelenskyy said, addressing Ukrainian soldiers.

During an economic forum last week in St. Petersburg, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that Russia had taken 47 Ukrainian towns and villages so far this year, including last month’s gains from Russia’s major ground assault in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

VOA could not verify the claim.

U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said Sunday during a TV interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that Russia’s advance on the Kharkiv border region had “stalled out” after Washington partially allowed Ukraine to use some U.S.-supplied weapons to strike inside Russia.

Putin warned the United States and NATO allies that such a move could prompt him to place similar Russian weapons in countries within range of the U.S. or its European allies.

In other developments, Ukraine may station some of the more than 60 F-16 fighter jets it’s set to receive from its Western allies at foreign bases to protect them from Russian strikes, a senior Ukrainian military officer said Monday.

Ukrainian pilots are currently undergoing training to fly the warplanes ahead of the deliveries expected to start later this year.

Moscow said F-16 jets and military airfields outside Ukraine will become legitimate targets if they take part in combat missions against Russian forces, the RIA state news agency quoted Andrei Kartapolov, head of the State Duma lower house of parliament’s defense committee as saying Monday.

Ukraine peace conference

Switzerland said Monday 90 countries and organizations will participate at the two-day Ukraine peace conference it is hosting beginning Saturday, at the request of Zelenskyy.

Russia will not participate.

Swiss President Viola Amherd told a news conference in Bern on Monday that the upcoming peace conference aims to be a platform for discussing ways to achieve a “comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine based on international law and the U.N. charter,” as well as working on a framework for carrying out a peace plan and how to involve Russia and Ukraine in a peace process.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will represent Ukraine’s most important military and financial backer, a setback for Zelenskyy who had hoped Biden would attend instead.

Zelenskyy had also hoped to secure high-level attendance from some of Moscow’s allies, principally China.

Beijing has criticized the gathering and said it would be “difficult” to attend without Russia’s participation.

Russia has criticized the process and said it would engage in peace talks only if they consider the situation on the ground, including Russia’s battlefield gains since launching its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Zelenskyy has demanded Russia withdraw from all Ukrainian territory.

Putin will visit North Korea and Vietnam in the coming weeks, Russia’s Vedomosti newspaper reported Monday.

Putin’s visit to Pyongyang is being “actively prepared,” Russian Ambassador to North Korea Alexander Matsegora told the newspaper.

Putin could also visit Vietnam most likely after his visit to North Korea, an official in Vietnam told the newspaper.

The official said the dates had been agreed, but the agenda was still under discussion. The two sides are expected to focus on energy, military cooperation and banking support.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry did not reply to a request for comment.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

Source: voanews.com