New Delhi: Ukraine’s capital was under bombardment in the early hours of Friday, with the skies ablaze as Vladimir Putin’s tanks moved to within 20 miles of Kyiv, Daily Mail reported.
Ukraine’s deputy defence ministry said that one missile was shot out of the sky by their anti-missile defense systems.
Another missile struck a residential building in the city, the government said.
A Ukrainian jet, a SU-27, was shot down by a surface-to-air missile in a separate incident, the Ukrainian government said, Daily Mail reported.
Hours earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky raged at Western cowards who failed to come to his aid, saying his country is being ‘left alone’ to face Russian troops.
Officials warn that Kyiv will be seized this weekend, the report said.
In a video address to his nation after midnight, the president called his fallen compatriots ‘heroes’ after 137 were killed on the first day of fighting, and insisted he will stay until the bitter end.
He said: “They’re killing people and turning peaceful cities into military targets. It’s foul and will never be forgiven.
“We have been left alone to defend our state. Who is ready to fight alongside us? I don’t see anyone.
“Who is ready to give Ukraine a guarantee of NATO membership? Everyone is afraid.”
He added that the enemy has already entered Kyiv and urged residents to be vigilant and observe curfew rules, acknowledging he was the “target number one”, the report said.
The Ukrainian capital is expected to be surrounded by Russian forces this weekend and the country’s resistance effectively crippled, US security officials fear.