Russian troops occupy the city of Melidopol in the southeastern province of Zaporizhia. UkraineRussian news agency Interfax quoted the Russian Defense Ministry as saying.
The ministry also said that Russia had used air and naval naval missiles to carry out overnight attacks against military targets in Ukraine.
Melidopol is the second largest city in Saporizia near the Molochna River and has a population of 150,000 according to the 2021 census.
Elsewhere wars are raging
The Ukrainian military says areas near the cities of Sumi, Poltava and Mariupol have been hit by airstrikes, and Russian caliber missiles fired from the Black Sea into the country.
A bomb blast near the northern city of Kiev has killed at least 14 people, according to Reuters.
Breakdown: Tall building in Kiev badly damaged after attack – Nexta pic.twitter.com/nn9qvhFV3R
– BNO News (BNONews) February 26, 2022
The fighting is taking place today near the southern Ukrainian cities of Mariupol, Kherson, Mykoliv and Odessa, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidential office said.
Mikhail Pontoliac, an adviser to the Ukrainian president’s office, told reporters: “Fierce fighting is taking place near Mariupol. But there is no case for Mariupol to surrender or be occupied.”