Ukraine's president said he discussed air defence assistance with US President Biden on Monday night, following Russia's massive bombing of several Ukrainian cities.
There's been international condemnation of Russia after Vladimir Putin ordered a wave of missile strikes across Ukraine on Monday morning, including against the capital Kyiv.
The strikes, the biggest and most widespread Russian attacks in months, are being seen as a major escalation by Moscow after a period of successful Ukrainian counteroffensives.
See a summary of Monday's developments in our blog below:
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In summary
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his country won't be "intimidated" by Russia following Monday's wave of missile strikes, which he said earlier had targeted Ukraine's energy system and its people
- Missiles struck Kyiv and cities across Ukraine, from Lviv near the Polish border in the west to Zaporizhzhia in the south and Kharkiv in the east, killing at least 11 people and injuring dozens, Ukrainian authorities said
- US President Biden promised to supply Ukraine with "advanced air defence systems" after a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, and Zelenskyy said "air defence" was his no1 priority
- Leaders across Europe condemned the strikes. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said they showed Russia's "terror and brutality"; EU Parliament President Roberta denounced Russian "war crimes"
- Ukraine called Russia a "terrorist state" at the UN General Assembly on Monday night
- Belarus announced the deployment of a "regional" military grouping with Moscow, President Lukashenko accusing the West of seeking to open a "second front" on its borders
- Euronews' Natalia Liubchenkova, reporting from Kyiv, says a sense of anger is prevailing among locals
- Vladimir Putin said the strikes were retaliation for the weekend explosion which damaged a bridge linking Russia and Crimea, vowing further action
- Zelenskyy is to join a videoconference of G7 leaders on Tuesday
Protestors in Warsaw accuse Russia of terrorism
Hundreds of people protested outside the Russian embassy in Warsaw on Monday, calling for Russia to be designated a terrorist state and for its diplomats to be expelled after missile strikes killed at least 11 people in Ukrainian cities.
Opposition to the Russian invasion is intense in Poland, with the country becoming one of Kyiv's staunchest supporters and taking in millions of refugees since the conflict started.
"All my family ... stayed in Ukraine and I don't know how I can support them," said Valeria Horna, a student from Kyiv who lives in Warsaw. "That's why I came to this meeting, simply to support Ukraine."
Protestors, many draped in the Ukrainian flag, brandished placards with the protest's slogan "Russia is a terrorist state."
"I demand that Russia be designated a terrorist state because... it is bombarding the innocent civilian population," said Monika Lowicka, a 40-year-old tax adviser.
A representative of the organisers, Euromaidan-Warszawa, put the number of protestors at around 2,000. A police spokesman declined to comment on how many people were present.
UN publicly rejects Russia's call for secret vote on Ukraine
The UN General Assembly voted on Monday to reject Russia's call for the 193-member body to hold a secret ballot later this week on whether to condemn Moscow's move to annex four partially occupied regions in Ukraine.
The General Assembly decided, with 107 votes in favour, that it would hold a public vote - and not a secret ballot - on a draft resolution that would condemn Russia's "illegal so-called referenda" and the "attempted illegal annexation." Diplomats said the vote on the resolution would likely be on Wednesday.
Only 13 countries on Monday opposed holding a public vote on the draft resolution, another 39 countries abstained and the remaining countries did not vote. Russia had argued that a secret ballot was needed because Western lobbying meant that "it may be very difficult if positions are expressed publicly."
Moscow has moved to annex four partially occupied regions in Ukraine -- Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia -- after staging what it called referendums. Ukraine and allies have denounced the votes as illegal and coercive.
The draft resolution to be voted on later this week calls on states not to recognize Russia's move and reaffirms the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
Ukrainians in Rome demonstrate against Russia
Dozens of Ukrainians demonstrated in Rome on Monday following Russian multiple attacks on Ukraine.
They gathered in a location not far from the Russian Embassy in Rome shouting slogans criticising Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Many demonstrators are Ukrainians who fled their country since Russian invasion began last February.
Biden promises Ukraine 'advanced air defence systems'
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that his country will not be "intimidated" by Russia's massive bombing raids, which have hit important energy infrastructure and left at least 11 people dead.
"Ukraine cannot be intimidated. It can only be united. Ukraine cannot be stopped," Zelenskyy said in a video posted on social networks, promising "even more painful" fighting for Russian troops on the frontline.
Later he said he had discussed air defence assistance with his US counterpart Joe Biden after the bombing of several Ukrainian cities, describing it on Twitter as a "productive conversation". "Air defence is currently the number one priority in our defence cooperation," he said.
The White House statement on the phone call said Biden "pledged to continue providing Ukraine with the support needed to defend itself, including advanced air defense systems".
At an emergency UN General Assembly, Ukraine accused Russia of being a "terrorist state".
"Russia has once again proved that it is a terrorist state that must be deterred in the strongest possible way," Ukraine's UN ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya told the session.
Attacks leave four dead in Dnipro
Several strikes on the central city of Dnipro on Monday killed four people and injured 19, local officials said. They also partially destroyed a telecommunications building and left a city bus charred and mangled beside a large smoldering crater in the street.
Bystanders said a rocket hit the telecommunications building in the western end of the city while another missed the target, landing just in front of a bus during morning rush hour.
Despite heavy damage to the bus, officials said no passengers had been killed.
The blasts broke windows out of residential buildings several hundred feet away and brought down power lines. The Dnipropetrovsk regional administration said 18 Russian rockets were fired at the region, five of which were taken down by air defense.
In an industrial area in the south of the city, Associated Press journalists saw at least three bodies covered with blankets near where a strike hit what appeared to be a commercial building.
Explosions were reported in Kryvyi Rih, a city in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region, that came under attack for a second time Monday. City governor Oleksandr Vilkul said the city was attacked by Iranian-built Shahed-136 drones.
The eastern city of Kharkiv was struck multiple times Monday morning, knocking out power in parts of the city.
Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that the energy infrastructure building was hit. There is no electricity and water in some of the districts of the city.
Power blackouts deepen Ukraine's concerns before winter
The Russian missile attacks on Ukraine's power network caused blackouts in many parts of the country on Monday, deepening fears of outages this winter and prompting Kyiv to halt electricity exports.
Four regions were left temporarily without electricity, and supplies were disrupted in several other areas, the State Emergency Service said.
Authorities in Kyiv asked civilians and businesses to limit energy use, and the energy ministry said it was halting electricity exports to the European grid after the biggest attack on the energy system since the war began in February.
Long queues formed at petrol stations in some areas.
"It is clear now that most of the missiles hit the power systems of different cities," Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the presidential office, said on the Telegram messaging app.
He warned civilians that "you need to be prepared for the consequences of such shelling, up to rolling blackouts."
Power was later restored in Lviv in western Ukraine but it was not immediately clear when it would be fully back in the other regions without electricity - Ternopil in the west, Sumy in the northeast and Poltava in central Ukraine.
Kyiv city authorities called on residents and businesses to limit electricity consumption from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. and urged owners of advertising signs to turn off their lights during this time.
Belarus troops won't wage war in Ukraine — Defence minister
Belarus’ Defence Minister Victor Khrenin has ruled out active participation in the war in Ukraine.
“We don’t want to fight Lithuanians, or Poles, or Ukrainians,” Khrenin said in a video statement Monday.
The remarks followed an announcement by the authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko that Belarus will host several thousand Russian troops. Lukashenko also warned Kyiv against attacking Belarus, despite the lack of any indication of an assault being planned.
Alexander Alesin, an independent Belarusian military analyst, says Belarus could host some 10,000-15,000 Russian troops, which together with its own military could form a joint force of up to 60,000. But, he argued, Minsk is not willing to deploy troops to Ukraine.
The Kremlin, according to some reports, wants its neighbour to host Russian nuclear weapons. Alesin said: “Iskander-M (missiles) have already been deployed to Belarus. They could be equipped with nuclear warheads with a capacity of 50 kilotons and a range of 500 kilometres.”
The analyst said some Belarusian Su-24M bombers had been modified at Russian factories to carry nuclear bombs. But he added: “Minsk specifically stipulates that deployment of Russian nuclear weapons to Belarus would only be possible if (US) nuclear weapons are deployed to neighbouring Poland.”
Russia 'struggling to develop strategic military targets'
European security analyst Ed Arnold of the UK's Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) says that Russia's attacks on civilians and energy infrastructure suggests it is having trouble with munitions stocks, or its intelligence is "struggling to develop strategic military targets".
He also thinks a three-day delay in calling Russia's National Security Council points to possible disagreements at the top on Moscow's response.
Czech protests against Russian attacks
Hundreds of protesters have gathered in the Czech capital to condemn the Russian strikes against multiple cities across Ukraine and demand additional international support for Ukraine’s air defences.
The demonstrators at central Wenceslas Square in Prague held up crosses with the names of places hit by the Russian missiles as well as umbrellas symbolising air defences.
Czech political leaders condemned the strikes that hit both civilian and infrastructure targets.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala said they were “not meant to damage military targets. It’s about murdering the civilian population and spreading fear.”
More protests are planned for Tuesday and Saturday.
Russian commentators praise missile strikes
Russian war bloggers and political commentators lauded Monday’s attacks but and argued that the strikes on energy infrastructure should incur lasting damage to Ukraine.
The hawkish Kremlin-backed leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, who has long pushed for ramping up strikes on Ukraine, said he is now “100 percent happy.” He taunted Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying “we warned you that Russia hasn’t even started it in earnest.”
Margarita Simonyan, the head of the state-funded RT television, cheered the strikes on her messaging app channel and said Ukraine had crossed a red line that by attacking the bridge to Crimea.
Andrei Kots, a war correspondent for Komsomolskaya Pravda, the top Russian tabloid, voiced hope that Monday’s strikes were “a new mode of action to the entire depth of the Ukrainian state until it loses its capacity to function.”
“It was just one massive attack on Ukraine’s infrastructure,” noted Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin Moscow-based political analyst. “The Russian public wants massive attacks and the full destruction of the infrastructure that could be used by the Ukrainian army.”
Russia prepared to carry out more strikes, warns Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened further attacks on Ukraine after Kyiv and other cities were hit with a barrage of Russian missiles on Monday.
In a video address, Putin said Russia was prepared to carry out more strikes in response to what he deemed to be “terrorist attacks” by Ukraine.
“Russia’s responses will be harsh and in scale will correspond to the level of threats posed to the Russian Federation,” he said, according to Russian state media.
His comments came a day after Putin labelled an attack on the Kerch Bridge a “terrorist act.”
Putin's warning echoes comments by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that 'more strikes' were to come for Ukraine.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said that strikes waged against Ukraine on Monday hit all the designated targets.
The ministry spokesman, Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said the Russian military launched “massive strikes on military command and communication facilities and energy infrastructure of Ukraine.”
Aid halted by today's attack
Assistance for Ukraine from some international organisations was temporarily stopped on Monday, following multiple Russian strikes.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NCR) said it halted operations in several Ukrainian cities this morning after they came under attack.
"We cannot aid vulnerable communities when our aid workers are hiding from a barrage of bombs and in fear of repeated attacks," Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the NRC.
"Protecting civilians from harm and being able to reach them safely with humanitarian aid is our primary concern," he added. "This must be facilitated and prioritised by all parties to the conflict.”
Other international humanitarian organisations, such as the Red Cross, continued their operations.
Volunteers of the Ukrainian Red Cross Emergency Response Team visited the site of rocket attacks in Kyiv and in other regions of Ukraine, providing first aid and psychological first aid to victims of the bombing.
Missile attacks 'unacceptable escalation', says UN's Guterres
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is "deeply shocked" by Russia's most widespread air strikes since the start of the Ukraine war on Monday, a U.N. spokesman said.
"This constitutes another unacceptable escalation of the war and, as always, civilians are paying the highest price," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
New air raid warning in Kyiv — and latest damage assessment
A second round of air raid sirens rang across Kyiv on Monday afternoon, sending many across the city back underground into shelters following missile strikes earlier in the day.
More air raid sirens also sounded repeatedly across the country on Monday.
Two days after the partial destruction of the Crimean bridge, a slap in the face for President Vladimir Putin, Russia fired 83 missiles at Ukraine, 43 of which were shot down by air defences, according to the Ukrainian Defence Ministry.
The remaining 40 missiles hit numerous energy installations, as well as civilian infrastructure, killing at least 11 people and injuring 64 throughout the country, according to the latest official report.
In downtown Kyiv, at least six people were killed amid burnt-out cars and shattered buildings.
Blasts struck in the capital’s Shevchenko district, a large area in the center of the city that includes the historic old town as well as several government offices, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Some of the strikes hit near the government quarter in the symbolic heart of the capital, where parliament and other major landmarks are located. A glass tower housing offices was significantly damaged, most of its blue-tinted windows blown out.
Residents were seen on the streets with blood on their clothes and hands. A young man sat on the ground as a medic wrapped a bandage around his head. A woman with her head bandaged had blood all over the front of her blouse.
Lukashenko accuses Ukraine and allies of planning to attack Belarus
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has accused Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine of preparing "terrorist" attacks and an "uprising" in Belarus, and announced the deployment of a "regional" military grouping with Moscow.
At a meeting with security officials, he accused the neighbouring countries of training fighters, "including Belarusian radicals", to carry out acts that were becoming a "direct threat".
He also alleged that the US and EU, by supporting such forces, were trying to "open a second front" on the western Belarusian border.
As a result, Minsk and Moscow will deploy a joint military grouping, he said, without specifying their location or the extent of its resources.
He claimed, without providing evidence, that his government had been warned by "unofficial channels" on Sunday of "a strike being prepared from Ukrainian territory on Belarus".
Belarus, an ally of Russia in its conflict with Ukraine, has already lent its territory to the Russian army for its offensive against Ukraine, but the Belarusian army has not yet taken part in the fighting on Ukrainian territory.
The entry of Belarusian forces into its neighbouring country would mark a further escalation of the conflict in Ukraine.
Macron deplores 'profound change in nature' of the war
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday added to his condemnation of the new wave of Russian strikes across Ukraine, accusing Moscow of deliberately targeting civilians.
These "deliberate strikes by Russia on the whole of Ukrainian territory and against civilians, it is a profound change in the nature of this war," he said during a trip to western France, adding that he would bring together his diplomatic and military advisers concerned upon his return to Paris to "take stock" of the situation.
In an earlier response to the Russian strikes, he reaffirmed France's commitment to increase military support.
Ukraine's President Zelenskyy asked his German and French counterparts for a "tough" response to Russia following the heavy shelling of several cities (see earlier post at 12.24 CET).
Condemning the attacks, Germany has promised help in repairing damage to civilian infrastructure, including electricity and heating supplies.
"Germany will do everything to mobilise additional help, said Chancellor Olaf Scholz's spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit. He said that leaders of the G7, which Germany currently chairs, will hold a videoconference Tuesday on the situation, which Zelenskyy will join.
Germany had said in June that it would provide IRIS-T air defense systems to Ukraine. Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht said Monday that the first of four systems will be ready "in the coming days," saying that Monday's attacks underlined the importance of the quick delivery of air-defence systems.
Those behind strikes must 'be held accountable' — Von der Leyen
"I am shocked and appalled by the vicious attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities," says the European Commission president in a statement.
In a joint announcement where they stood side by side, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas gave comments direct to camera regarding the escalation in violence
"Russia once again has shown to the world what it stands for – it is terror and brutality. Those who are responsible have to be held accountable," said the Commission president.
"We are mourning the victims and I send my heartfelt condolences to our Ukrainians friends. I know that Ukrainians will not be intimidated.
"And Ukrainians know that we will stand by their side, as long as it takes.
"We are with the victims. We stand by Ukraine," added Kallas, confirming that EU nations were supporting Ukraine in "every possible way."
"What we have to do is definitely deliver air defence from the allies side so that the Ukrainians can protect their cities, their civilians, because Russia is definitely escalating to harm the civilians," she said.
Von der Leyen's intervention follows an earlier statement from a Commission spokesman who called Russia's attacks "barbaric and cowardly". (see earlier post at 13.38 CET).
Peter Stano said it showed that the Russian tactics were to bomb civilians indiscriminately, and the EU would continue to offer Ukraine political, economic and military support.
'More strikes to come' — former Russian President Medvedev
Former Russian president and prime minister Dmitry Medvedev — an ally of President Putin — has taken to social media to call for more strikes against Ukraine.
"The first episode is played," he said. "There will be others."
Medvedev said that in his "personal opinion" Monday's strikes should continue until the ultimate goal is realised, namely "the complete dismantling of the Ukrainian political regime"
He said on Telegram that as things stand, Ukraine's "Nazi political regime will pose a constant, direct and clear threat to Russia".
Russian strikes 'reprehensible war crimes', EU Parliament head tells Euronews
Roberta Metsola, the president of the European Parliament, described the Russian strikes that hit Kyiv on Monday morning as “absolutely reprehensible,” and urged member states to step up their military support for Ukraine.
“What is happening is sickening. This indiscriminate attack on children, on people going by their daily lives, going to school. Civilians being killed is absolutely reprehensible,” Metsola told Euronews correspondent Sándor Zsíros.
“Appeasement has never worked and appeasement will never work. These are war crimes and the response has to be proportionate.”
Speaking at the Parliament’s premises in Brussels, Metsola stressed that “Ukraine must win this war and we must do everything to make sure that Ukraine wins this war.”
Last week, the EU approved its eighth package of sanctions against Russia in direct response to the illegal annexation of four Ukrainian regions.
Asked if the bloc should apply new penalties after Monday’s developments, Metsola said “nothing is off the table.”
“Why are we not militarily helping Ukraine enough? We need to help Ukraine with heavier military weapons,” Metsola said.
“We have the tools, we have the numbers in order to do that without [endangering] any individual member state’s military capacity. Why have we not done so yet?”
German consulate hit
Germany's consulate in Kyiv was reportedly hit during the heavy Russian missile attacks on the Ukrainian capital today.
A spokesman for the Foreign Office confirmed that the building which houses the German visa office had been damaged.
However, he said there has been "no service" there for months.
According to the spokesman, no employees were present during the Russian rocket attacks.
'Hottest morning' for Kyiv since invasion began
This morning was the "hottest" for Kyiv since Russian troops pressed upon the Ukrainian capital at the start of the invasion, reports Euronews Correspondent Nataliia Liubchenkova from Kyiv.
She said "critical civilian infrastructure" and "civilians" were hit by the bombardment, creating a "sense of fear" among the local population, however a "feeling of anger" was prevailing in Kyiv.
Speaking from outside a metro station in the Ukrainian capital, Liubchenkova described how people had anticipated the strikes, which Russian President Vladimir Putin said this morning were retaliation for a blast on Russia's Crimean bridge over the weekend.
Metro stations in Kyiv, which function as bomb shelters, were "full" this morning said Liubchenkova, with people taking their children and pets to safety, besides blankets to sit on.
People had begun filing out of the underground shelters later on into the morning, she added.
Liubchenkova confirmed reports of power outages in Kyiv and Lviv, alongside water supply problems.
Earlier on Monday, Putin said Russian missiles had targeted energy, military and communication infrastructure in Ukraine, saying the country achieved its "objectives".
"I don't feel panic," Liubchenkova said. "I think people are thinking forward how to deal with this threat [and] how to make sure they and their families are safe."
First death toll put at 10
Ukrainian police have confirmed that at least 10 people were killed in Russian strikes on Monday.
This is one of the first official death tolls to come from Ukraine, though the final figure is likely to be higher as authorities get the chance to take stock of what has happened.
Several places across Ukraine were hit by a cascade of Russian missiles on Monday morning, including the capital Kyiv.
'Barbaric and cowardly': Brussels condemns Russian bombardment
The European Commission has condemned the Russian strikes on Ukraine as "barbaric and cowardly".
"The European Union condemns in the strongest possible terms this heinous attack on the civilians and civilian infrastructure," said EU Commission spokesman Peter Stano.
"These are barbaric and cowardly attacks and they only show that Russia is opting for a tactic with aiming and indiscriminately bombing civilians.
"This is something against international humanitarian law and this indiscriminate targeting of civilians amounts to a war crime," he added.
The strikes which pounded Ukraine on Monday came two days after Russia appointed General Sergey Surovikin to lead its troops in the country.
Surovikin has been accused of indiscriminately bombing civilians in Syria, where he previously led Russian forces.
EU spokesman Stano said the bloc would continue to support Ukraine "in all the necessary domains be it the economy, be it political, be it diplomatic on the international scene and of course also with the military assistance."
He pointed out that Brussels and individual EU members are providing Ukraine with weapons and other forms of bilateral support.
As of July, the EU has announced a total of €2.5 billion to support the Ukrainian armed forces.
Stano also criticised what he called "false accusations" from Belarus that Ukraine was planning an attack on its territory.
"These are totally unfounded, ridiculous accusations," he said. "They are utterly unacceptable. Ukraine here is the victim, Ukraine is not the aggressor."
"We remind the Belarusian regime that Ukraine is under brutal, illegal attack, which is in violation of the UN charter and in violation of international law."
He called on Minsk to stop allowing Russia to launch strikes on Ukraine from its territory.
Belarus is a long-term ally of Russia. It has let Moscow launch ground and air assaults from its soil on Ukraine since the start of the invasion.
Strikes 'achieved their objective': Russia
Russian missiles that rained down on Ukraine this morning "achieved their objective", according to the Russian Ministry of Defence.
"The objective of the strikes has been achieved. All targets have been hit," it said in a statement released Monday afternoon.
The ministry made the comments moments after Russian President Vladimir Putin said missile strikes had taken place on energy, military and communication infrastructure in Ukraine.
He added that the deadly bombardment was retaliation for Saturday's explosion on the Russian Crimea Bridge, which caused a section to plunge into the war.
(AFP)
Sheltering Ukrainians sing in Kyiv Metro Station
Defiant locals broke out into song while taking refuge in Kyiv's Nyvky station on Monday, amid a fierce bombardment of the Ukrainian capital.
Sharing the footage online, an advisor to Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Liubov Tsybulska, said: "Russia, we sing and stay strong no matter how hard you try to kill us."
Finland: Random attacks against civilians are war crimes
Finland's foreign minister has joined a chorus of European politicians criticing Russian missile strikes against targets in Ukraine on Monday morning.
Pekka Haavisto said that "random attacks against civilians are war crimes."
"Russia must stop its illegal aggression and leave Ukraine," the former United Nations official wrote on Twitter.
Zelenskyy asks European leaders for 'tough' response
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked his German and French counterparts for a "tough" response to Russia following heavy shelling of several Ukrainian cities on Monday morning.
"We discussed the strengthening of our air defence, the need for a tough European and international reaction, as well as increased pressure on Russia," Zelenskyy said on Twitter, after speaking urgently with Olaf Scholz and Emmanuel Macron.
Zelenskyy also called for an emergency meeting of the G7.
The group of advanced economies -- including the UK, US, EU, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan --- has said it would meet to discuss developments in Ukraine on Tuesday.
After Zelenskyy's comments, Macron said the situation inside the country was of "extreme concern" to him and reaffirmed France's commitment to increase military support.
These comments were echoed by European Foreign Minister Josep Borrell.
Mid-Monday morning, Borrell said he was "deeply shocked" by Russia's attacks on civilians in Ukraine and announced "additional" military support for Kyiv.
"Such acts have no place in the 21st century. I condemn them in the strongest possible terms. We stand with Ukraine. Further EU military support is on the way," he said, adding that measures on new European funding would be adopted soon.
(AFP)
'Russian missiles' violated Moldovan airspace, claims Deputy PM
Moldova's Deputy Prime Minister has said that "Russian missiles" fired on Ukraine this morning violated his country's airspace.
Writing on Twitter, Nicu Popescu, Deputy PM and Minister of Foreign Affairs, said: "Three cruise missiles launched on Ukraine this morning from Russian ships in the Black Sea crossed Moldova's airspace."
"I instructed that Russia's ambassador be summoned to provide an explanation," he added.
Moldova, a former Soviet state, borders southwestern Ukraine and has a significant Russian-speaking minority, who make up around 9% of the population.
There have been concerns in the past that Moldova could get dragged into the conflict between Kyiv and Moscow.
Dnipro: At least three dead in strikes on southern city
A telecommunications building was hit in the central city of Dnipro on Monday morning, one of several strikes in the southern city that caused at least three deaths.
Bystanders said that two rockets hit the building in the western end of the city. A heavily damaged bus could be seen on the street in front of the building, which was strewn with rubble and broken glass.
Oleksandr Shuklin, a construction worker who was working on a site just adjacent to the strike, said he’d seen one person who had died and another that was taken away by ambulance with injuries.
He said he believed the strikes across Ukraine on Monday were Russian retaliation for the explosion on the Kerch bridge on Saturday. (AP)
Putin is 'terrorising innocent lives' says Dutch PM
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says Vladimir Putin is "massively terrorising innocent lives in Kyiv and other cities."
Writing on Twitter, Rutte said his country "condemns these heinous acts."
"Putin does not seem to understand that the will of the Ukrainian people is unbreakable. Ukraine remains determined, and we continue to support Ukraine."
Explosions in Lviv target energy infrastructure
Explosions were also reported in a number of other locations across Ukraine, including the western city of Lviv that has been a refuge for many people fleeing the fighting in the east; as well as Ternopil, Khmelnytskyi, Zhytomyr and Kropyvnytskyi.
"Strikes on energy infrastructure in the Lviv region were recorded," regional governor Maxim Kozitsky said on Telegram, calling on residents "to stay in shelters" in the face of "the threat of further attacks".
Kharkiv hit multiple times on Monday
The eastern city of Kharkiv was struck multiple times Monday morning, knocking out power in parts of the city.
Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that the energy infrastructure building was hit. There is no electricity and water in some of the districts of the city.
Local officials say that an electricity station was hit. Meanwhile there were also problems with internet.
The strikes come two days after a series of explosions rocked the city on Saturday, sending towering plumes of illuminated smoke into the sky and triggering a series of secondary explosions. (AP)
Some reports on damage and initial casualty figures
In Kyiv, Mayor Vitalii Klitchko reported blasts in the city’s Shevchenko district, a large area in the center of Kyiv that includes the historic old town as well as several government offices.
The spokesperson for Emergency Service in Kyiv said there are dead and wounded people. Rescuers are now working in different locations, said Svitlana Vodolaga.
The number of casualties is not yet known, although President Zelenskyy wrote on his Telegram channel that "as a result of the missile attack on Kyiv, there are dead and injured. These are civilians who moved around the city in their own cars."
EU Commissioner heads to Kyiv basement during missile strikes
The EU's Commissioner for Justice, Belgian politician Didier Reynders, is currently visiting Kyiv and says he was taken to the basement of his hotel by security personnel when the explosions were heard.
"A series of explosions in downtown Kyiv this morning," he wrote in French.
"Thanks to the quick reaction of the security staff, my team and I were quickly transferred to the basement of the hotel. We are safe and awaiting further developments."
Ukraine MP posts picture of missile strike aftermath
Lesia Vasylenko, a member of Ukraine's parliament, posted a photo on Twitter showing that at least one explosion occurred near the main building of the Kyiv National University in central Kyiv.