Russia is under international pillory after a rocket attack on a shopping center in eastern Ukraine that left at least 16 people dead. The participants at the G7 summit in Elmau, Bavaria, speak of a war crime and threaten Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin with consequences. President Volodymyr Zelenskyj asks again for modern air defense systems. Meanwhile, the rating agency Moody's has determined that Russia has defaulted on payments due to unpaid debts to international investors. Mykolaiv in south-eastern Ukraine also reported explosions early in the morning.
Explosions shake Mykolayiv
According to local authorities, several explosions occurred early in the morning in the Black Sea city of Mykolayiv. According to Mayor Olexander Senkewitsch, reports of possible damage and victims are not yet known. He calls on residents to go to safe places. The Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday that more than 40 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in attacks in the Mykolaiv region of south-eastern Ukraine. The information cannot be independently verified.
Fire destroys mall after rocket hits
According to Zelensky, more than 1,000 people were in the shopping center in the city of Kremenchuk. After the rocket hit, the building was engulfed in flames and burned out to a large extent. Videos showed that mainly only concrete pillars and metal constructions remained. At least 18 people were killed in the attack, according to rescue workers. Around 60 people were injured, half of them seriously, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office said. She also reports more than 40 missing person reports.
Selenskyj asks for air defense systems
After the missile attack, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy again asked the West for modern air defense systems. Ukraine had asked for this before the war and immediately after the Russian invasion, Zelenskyy emphasized in his daily video address. "People in the Kremenchuk mall deserve the same security as people in any mall in the world, whether it's somewhere in Philadelphia or Tel Aviv, or in a shopping arcade in Dresden," said Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy: Russia "biggest terrorist organization in the world"
Zelenskyy described Russia after the attack as "the largest terrorist organization in the world". That must also be determined legally. "And everyone in the world needs to know that if you buy or transport Russian oil, have contacts with Russian banks or pay taxes or customs duties to the Russian state, it means giving money to terrorists," said Zelenskyy.
G7: Putin will be held accountable
"Arbitrary attacks on innocent civilians are war crimes. Russian President Putin and those responsible will have to account for this," declared the participants at the G7 summit on Monday evening. "Russia's attack on civilians in a mall is horrific," US President Joe Biden wrote on Twitter. "This appalling attack shows once again the level of cruelty and barbarism the Russian leader is capable of," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on the sidelines of the G7 summit.
Russian UN diplomat speaks of "provocation"
Russia's deputy ambassador to the UN, Dmitry Polyansky, described the attack as a "new Bucha-style Ukrainian provocation". Moscow has always dismissed the well-documented killings of Ukrainian civilians in the Kyiv suburb by Russian troops as alleged staging.
Eight people killed in line for drinking water
According to the authorities, eight people were killed in a queue in front of a tank truck with drinking water in the Ukrainian city of Lysychansk in a Russian missile attack. Another 21 were injured, wrote the governor of the Luhansk region, Serhiy Hajdaj, to the Telegram news service. Lysychansk is the last major city in the region under Ukrainian control. According to Ukrainian regional commander Oleg Sinegubov, Russian shelling killed 5 civilians and wounded 22 others in the city of Kharkiv. Sinegubow wrote on Telegram that five children were among the injured.
Medvedev: Crimea will always be part of Russia
Former Russian President and current Deputy Head of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev reaffirmed Russia's claim to the annexed Crimean peninsula. "For us, Crimea is part of Russia. And that's forever," Medvedev told the Argumenty i Fakty newspaper. Any attempt to dispute Crimea with Russia is "a declaration of war on our country." And if a NATO country were involved: "Third World War. Total catastrophe." Crimea, part of Ukraine, was occupied by Russia in 2014. The annexation is not recognized internationally.
Moody's finds Russia defaulting
The rating agency Moody's formally declared a default by Russia due to debt not being paid on time. Specifically, it is about interest payments on two government bonds that have not reached creditors even after a default period of 30 days, Moody's said. This time it is not a question of bankruptcy in the true sense. The state coffers are well stocked, but Western sanctions over the war against Ukraine have made it difficult for the Kremlin to pay off debts abroad. Therefore, the default comes as no surprise. On the financial markets, the risk had been considered firmly calculated and manageable for months.
That brings the day
You can read all further developments in our live ticker on the Ukraine war.
