Russian missiles hit an apartment block and kindergarten in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv yesterday, in strikes US President Joe Biden condemned as “barbarism” as world leaders gathered in Europe to discuss further sanctions against Moscow.

Russian missiles hit an apartment block and kindergarten in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Sunday, in strikes U.S. President Joe Biden condemned as "barbarism" as world leaders gathered in Europe to discuss further sanctions against Moscow.

Russian missiles rained down across Ukraine yesterday, hitting military facilities in the west and the north as well as a southern city as the biggest land conflict in Europe since World War Two entered its fifth month. 

Russia's war against Ukraine, not Western sanctions, will add another 40 or 50 million more people to the ranks of the hungry, said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Berlin.

Ukraine signalled yesterday that its troops were withdrawing from the city of Severodonetsk, the scene of weeks of intense bombardments and street fighting, in a move that would be a significant setback in its struggle to defeat Russian forces.

European leaders formally accepted Ukraine as a candidate to join the EU yesterday, a bold geopolitical move triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but a reminder that the 27-nation bloc will need a major overhaul as it looks to enlarge again.

Ukraine on Thursday held a preliminary hearing in its first trial of a Russian soldier charged with raping a Ukrainian woman during Russia's invasion, the first of what could be dozens of such cases.

European Union leaders on Thursday are set to make Ukraine a candidate for joining the 27-nation bloc, a first step in a long and unpredictable journey toward full membership that could take many years to navigate.

Russia has already given offer to export two lakh metric tons of wheat to Bangladesh, Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder told the parliament today (June 23, 2022).

“Massive” Russian bombardment of the strategic eastern city of Lysychansk and key city Severodonetsk has been “hell” for soldiers there, Kyiv said, while insisting that defenders would hold “as long as necessary”.

Russian forces pounded Ukraine's second largest city Kharkiv and surrounding countryside with rockets, killing at least 20 people in what Kyiv called a bid to force it to pull resources from the main battlefield to protect civilians from attack.

Bangladesh is trying to secure wheat supplies from Russia in a government-to-government deal after its biggest supplier India restricted exports of the grain last month to contain local prices, government and trade officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

Moscow yesterday warned Lithuania of “serious” consequences over its restriction of rail traffic to Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, as Kremlin forces made gains in Ukraine’s strategic Donbas region.

Germany faces certain recession if already faltering Russian gas supplies completely stop, an industry body warned on Tuesday, as Italy said it would consider offering financial backing to help companies refill gas storage to avoid a deeper crisis in winter.

Russian forces have stepped up their shelling in Ukraine’s Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, Kyiv said yesterday, after President Volodymyr Zelensky warned to expect greater hostilities ahead of a historic EU decision on Ukraine’s bid for candidate status.

What’s the price of peace?

The war in Ukraine could last for years, the head of Nato said yesterday, calling for steadfast support from Ukraine’s allies as President Zelensky vowed that his forces “will not give away the south to anyone” after visit to the southern frontline.

With a blessing for its EU ambitions and a pledge of unwavering support from Britain, Ukraine vowed on Saturday to prevail against Moscow as it battled Russian assaults near a key eastern city and multiple locations came under shell and missile attack.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday visited the war-damaged southern city of Mykolaiv for the first time since the Russian invasion as “fierce battles” raged again in the eastern Donbas region.

Europe sent a powerful symbol of solidarity with Ukraine yesterday, when Brussels backed Kyiv’s bid for EU candidate status, even as Russia shelled frontline Ukrainian cities and cut back gas supplies to the West.