In addition, two incidents of Russian bombing of civilians occurred in Udong that day, killing at least 12 people. A Kremlin spokesman said Russia would stop its offensive as long as Ukraine surrendered. The former Russian president said that if NATO members invaded the Crimea peninsula, it would trigger a third world war. France plans to hand over a “large number” of armored transport vehicles to Ukraine and is considering supplying anti-ship missiles known as “killers at sea” to help the Ukrainian army break Russia’s food blockade on the Black Sea. The United Kingdom made another move, sending out invitations to Russian scientists who were dissatisfied with the invasion of Ukraine to conduct research in the United Kingdom.
According to comprehensive foreign media reports, at more than 3 pm on June 27, a Russian missile attacked a shopping mall in Kremenchuk, central Ukraine. The entire building exploded and caught fire. At that time, there were still more than 1,000 people, with estimated casualties.
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office, said at a news briefing on the 28th that according to current statistics, “more than 20 people have been killed” in the attack, and more than 40 people are still missing.
“Some of the bodies are so charred that they cannot be identified, and it may take days to identify them,” Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky said at the same briefing.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said the attack was a rush hour at the shopping mall, which was deliberately chosen to cause the maximum number of casualties.
“Reuters” reported that as night fell on the 27th, firefighters and soldiers continued to search and rescue with lights and generators. Some family members covered their mouths with their hands, and their emotions were almost broken. Casualties are likely to continue to increase.
Kiril Zhebolovsky, 24, is looking for his friend Ruslan, 22, who works at the electronics store Comfy and has not been heard from since the explosion.
Injured Ludmyla Mykhailets, 43, said she and her husband Mykola were visiting an electronics store when the blast threw her into the air. “I was thrown into the air and the pieces hit my body. The whole mall collapsed and then I fell to the ground, I don’t know if I was conscious at the time,” she said, adding that she had a broken arm and a broken head. split.
“It’s hell,” said her husband Mikola, 45, as he spoke while the bandages covering his head still oozing blood.
Before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, the industrial city of Kremenchug, with a population of 217,000, was home to Ukraine’s largest oil refinery. After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the city had not been attacked by Russian troops before.
The Russian army issued a statement saying that the air strike was a “weapon and ammunition depot assisted by the United States and European countries near the Kremenchug car factory.” “The explosion of Western weapons and ammunition caused a fire in a nearby shopping mall. The shopping center is not open.”
The Kremlin backed the Russian statement, saying the Ministry of Defense had explained it “exhaustively”, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed that “I have nothing to add” and that Ukraine could end the war today with a surrender order. .
Zelensky calls on democratic world to include Russia as state sponsor of terrorism
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram video on the evening of the 27th: “The Russian attack on the Kremenchug shopping center today is the most blatant terrorist act in European history. “A peaceful town, an ordinary shopping mall, with women, children and ordinary people.”
“Only utterly deranged terrorists who have no place on Earth will fire missiles at civilian targets,” Zelensky said, accusing Russia of “deliberate air strikes” on civilian infrastructure.
“I implore the United States to recognize Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism,” Zelensky said, according to the Ukrainian presidential website. “The resolution has been approved by the U.S. Senate committee, and the State Department can adopt this legal decision. This decision is clearly necessary and must be supported by the entire democratic world.”
“The number of airstrikes and multiple rocket launch systems (MLRS) hitting our cities is incalculable, in the hundreds of thousands in the first four months of the war. This is terror,” Zelensky said.
He said: “Russia has become the largest terrorist organization in the world. It is a fact. It has to be a legal fact. Everyone in the world must know, buy or ship Russian oil, keep in touch with Russian banks, pay taxes and duties to Russia , which is funding terrorists with money.”
International shock condemns Russian brutality, G7 says it constitutes a ‘war crime’
The attack has drawn stern condemnation from world leaders. The Group of Seven (G7) issued a statement sternly condemning this “abhorrent attack”, emphasizing that the Russian military’s indiscriminate attack on innocent civilians has constituted a “war crime”, and Russian President Vladimir Putin and relevant leaders will be arrested. be held accountable. The G7 also mentioned in a statement that “we will not stop” until Russia ends this brutal and meaningless war against Ukraine, and will continue to provide Ukraine with financial, humanitarian and military assistance in the future.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said such attacks showed Putin “the level of cruelty and barbarism”. “Putin must realize that his actions will only reinforce the determination of the United Kingdom and all the rest of the G7 to stand behind Ukraine,” he said.
The office of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned Russia’s actions, with spokesman Stephane Dujarric saying: “Any attack on a shopping mall is extremely egregious.”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed shock at the attack and vowed to hold those responsible for the atrocities in Russia accountable. “The world was shocked today by the Russian missile attack, the latest in a series of atrocities, by attacking a packed Ukrainian shopping mall,” Blinken tweeted.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said: “We will continue to increase the pressure on Putin. This war must end.”
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted: “Russian bombing of Kremenchug’s shopping mall is abhorrent. We share our grief and anger with the families of the victims in the face of this atrocity. “The Russian people must see the truth.”
Attack frequency rises, at least 12 civilians killed in two Russian attacks
The Russian army also attacked two civilian sites in Udong on the 27th. Lugansk Oblast (Lugansk) Governor Sergiy Gaiday pointed out that the rockets launched by the Russian army’s multiple rocket system (MLRS) were aimed at the people queuing up for water storage tanks in eastern Lysychansk, killing at least 8 people. killed and 42 injured.
Kharkiv Governor Oleg Synegubov said four people were killed and 19 injured, including four children, in the attack in Kharkiv. “The enemy forces deliberately terrify the general population,” he said in a Telegram statement.
“CNN” reported that the frequency of Russian military attacks on Ukraine has risen sharply recently. U.S. defense executives believe that this may be related to several factors, including the G7 meeting, Ukraine’s deployment of the “Haimas” high-mobility multiple rocket system into the theater, or These attacks are the long-term strategy of the Russian military.
Kremlin: Ukraine surrenders and stops attacking
Zelensky told G7 leaders via video on the 27th that all countries in the world will help as much as possible, hoping to win and end Russia’s aggression before the end of the year. He also pointed out at the time that the time for negotiations with Russia has not yet come.
In response to this, “AFP” reported that Kremlin spokesman Peskov responded on the 28th, “We have followed the remarks of our president (Putin), and the special military operation is proceeding as planned, and gradually achieve the goal.”
“Before today, the Ukrainian side can end all this. It is necessary to order those nationalist forces to lay down their arms,” Peskov told reporters, adding that Kyiv must meet a series of demands from Moscow.
Russia currently occupies parts of southern and eastern Ukraine.
Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president and current deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, told the Russian news site Argumenty i Fakty: “For us , Crimea is part of Russia and always will be, any attempt to invade Crimea is a declaration of war on our country.”
Medvedev said: “If this is what NATO members do, it means (we will) have a conflict with the entire North Atlantic alliance, it will be a third world war, a A complete disaster.”
The Crimea peninsula is located in the Black Sea, bordering the southern border of Ukraine and the west of Russia. It has long been part of the Russian Republic in the past. It was only in 1954, during the period of Soviet leader Khrushchev, that Crimea was assigned to one of the republics. Ukraine, while the island is mostly Russian. Crimea was annexed by Putin in 2014 and has since become part of the Russian Federation.
Since the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war in February, the two sides have been fighting and talking. The issue of the sovereignty of Crimea is also one of the main points of disagreement on the negotiating table between Russia and Ukraine.
France plans to aid Ukraine’s ‘Sea Killer’ missile to break through Russia’s food blockade
French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu revealed to Le Parisien on the 27th that in order to move quickly in areas under enemy fire, France intends to transfer “a large number” of armored transport vehicles to Ukraine, and is considering providing the code-named “Flying Fish” ( Exocet)’s MM40 anti-ship missile to help the Ukrainian army break the Russian food blockade on the Black Sea.
“Flying Fish” is known as the world‘s most advanced anti-ship missile and is known as “Sea Killer”. It has various launching methods such as ship-launched, submarine-launched, and air-launched. Flying close to the speed of sound at a height of less than 5 meters above the water, it is difficult for the opponent’s radar to detect. The “Flying Fish” anti-ship missile has been in service since the 1980s, and has experienced a lot of actual combat experience. It is an anti-ship missile system with excellent overall performance evaluation. In the 1982 Falkland War, the British destroyer HMS Sheffield was sunk by Argentina’s French “Flying Fish” anti-ship missile and became famous in the war. The second-generation “Flying Fish” anti-ship missile (MM-40 Block 2), the control wing can be folded, uses digital circuits and a new seeker, and is exported to many countries as a new surface strike weapon.
The Guardian reported that as part of its aid to Ukraine, the UK promised to allow Ukrainian academics to continue their professional work at UK research institutions. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the invitation now also applies to Russian scientists.
“For scientists and researchers who are disappointed by Putin’s actions, or who no longer feel safe in Russia, you can apply with confidence to come to the UK and work in a country that values openness, freedom and the pursuit of knowledge,” Johnson said.
The UK policy, known as the Researcher Risk Scheme, has increased the budget to almost £10m and will allow 130 Ukrainian academics to study and support in the UK. Johnson also stressed at this year’s G7 summit that allowing Russia to achieve results in the conflict would put global stability at high risk.