3.16.22
Ukraine said its military had launched a counteroffensive in its capital, Kyiv, and other key cities, as President Volodymyr Zelensky urged the U.S. Congress to provide more weapons and increase economic pressure on Russia. The thump of distant shelling echoed through the center of Kyiv overnight, while Ukrainian forces appeared to counterattack in the outlying towns of Irpin, Bucha and Hostomel, which have been severely damaged in weeks of street fighting and artillery exchanges. The city and the surrounding region were under an all-day curfew Wednesday. Ukrainian forces also said they pressed an offensive south and east of the southern port of Mykolayiv, moving in the direction of Kherson, the only Ukrainian regional capital occupied by Russia since the war began Feb. 24. Ukraine said it carried out an airstrike on the Kherson airport, which is now a Russian air base, and satellite imagery of the tarmac showed seven destroyed or damaged Russian helicopters, some of them engulfed in flames. Kyiv also said it shot down two Russian Su-30SM jets over the Black Sea off Odesa. Moscow has largely not commented on combat losses and said its campaign was progressing.
Mr. Zelensky, in a virtual address to members of Congress on Wednesday, thanked the U.S. for its support as Ukraine tries to fend off Russia’s invasion, but he added, “In the darkest time for our country, for the whole of Europe, I call for you to do more.” Mr. Zelensky spoke via a translator, but concluded his speech in English with a personal plea to President Biden. “President Biden, you are the leader of your great nation,” he said. “I see you as the leader of the world. Being the leader of the world means to be the leader of peace.” Mr. Zelensky’s appeal came as civilian casualties mounted from Russia’s air and artillery strikes. In the western city of Rivne, officials raised the death toll from an attack on a television tower earlier this week, saying 21 people were killed, up from nine fatalities on the day of the strike. International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan was in Ukraine with an investigative team, which is working with Ukrainian law enforcement to collect evidence of war crimes. The Kremlin said Wednesday that a neutral status similar to those of Sweden or Austria could be a model for Ukraine. Kyiv has rejected that idea, seeking clear security guarantees. Ukraine is insisting that Russia withdraw all its forces from the country, and won’t recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea or the Russian-led statelets of Donetsk and Luhansk.