Russia Threatens Fresh Strikes on Kyiv
Russia says it plans to hit strategic targets across Ukraine's capital Kyiv, and has warned foreign nationals to leave the city. But Ukraine is telling its partners not to flinch in the face of what it calls "Russian blackmail."
The Aftermath of Attacks on Ukraine’s National Chernobyl Museum
REPORTER:
In the ruins of Ukraine’s National Chernobyl Museum, the cleanup is starting over from scratch. The monument to history’s most infamous nuclear disaster and a deep trauma for Ukraine had only just finished renovations ahead of its 40th anniversary. Now, it’s partly destroyed, the latest Ukrainian building blasted apart in a Russian missile attack.
Vitalina Martynovska (DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CHERNOBYL MUSEUM):
According to preliminary estimates, we have lost 40% of the museum exhibits that were on display. A significant portion of the items have been rescued from the exhibition. I hope that we will still find some items that may be trapped under the collapsed drywall structures.
REPORTER:
And Russia says it’s just getting started. Its foreign ministry on Monday warned foreigners to leave the capital Kyiv, ahead of what it called “systematic strikes” against key Ukrainian targets.
REPORTER:
Russia says it’s retaliation for a Ukrainian strike here, on what it says was a student dormitory. Moscow says the attack—in a Russian-occupied part of Ukraine—killed 21.
Yana Lantratova (RUSSIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER):
Three waves of drones 10-15 minutes apart. 16 UAVs in total. They waited for the children to run out. They fired directly at the children.
REPORTER:
Ukraine says it's not responsible for the attack—that it struck a drone command center instead. But Russian anger hasn’t abated.
REPORTER:
Ukraine’s government is telling its Western allies not to flinch in the face of this new threat, hoping to shore up support as Ukraine and Russia continue to trade deadly attacks.
Andrii Sybiha (UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER):
We are currently telling our partners that there is no need to give in to this Russian blackmail. We have been through all of this before and we know when Vladimir Putin amps up this rhetoric. That is, he escalates, tries to influence this so-called Western mentality, whether it's nuclear threats or joint exercises on the territory of Belarus. This is his way, you know, once again, of mocking all peace efforts.
REPORTER:
European allies, at least, seem to be staying put. The head of the EU mission in Kyiv says the bloc’s presence in the city will remain. And among the diplomats laying flowers in a Kyiv neighborhood battered by a recent strike was France’s ambassador to Ukraine who had this assessment.
Gael Veyssiere (FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE):
But as you can see around me, actually, people, normal people are working normally here today. It's a way to demonstrate resilience and I think it's extremely important that we, around the world, we would support that.
REPORTER:
Russia seems serious about pushing ahead with fresh attacks. The country’s defense minister recently inspected a command center of Russian forces in Ukraine. Scenes like this and the recent firing of an Oreshnik hypersonic missile at Ukraine—for just the third time in this whole war—show Russia does not appear to be slowing down.
