Russians kill one civilian and injure another in airstrike on Shevchenko, Donetsk Oblast

Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (SES) reported that Russians killed one civilian man and injured another in an airstrike on a residential area in the village of Shevchenko in the Volnovakha District of the Donetsk Oblast.

“Houses have been destroyed. Emergency workers have retrieved the body of the deceased from under the rubble. They have also provided first aid to the wounded man and taken him to hospital,” the SES reported. 

Emergency workers reportedly removed five tonnes of building debris.

By way of background, according to the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office, a 53-year-old woman was killed and three others were injured in Russian airstrikes on Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka in the Donetsk Oblast on January 23. One of the missiles struck a house, killing a 53-year-old woman and leaving her 70-year-old husband with a concussion and shrapnel injuries.

Ten minutes later, a Russian missile struck homes in Kramatorsk. Two men, ages 41 and 64, suffered bruises, concussions, and brain injuries. They were promptly attended to by medical professionals. Two cars and at least 16 homes were also damaged in that attack. 

According to a quote from Anastasiia Medvedeva in Suspilne Donbas, two married couples came under fire in Siversk and Rivne in the Donetsk Oblast earlier, on January 6, resulting in one fatality and three casualties. Medvedeva, spokesperson for Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office, stated that a local resident, 64, was killed, and his wife, 61, sustained injuries to her legs.

At around 13:25, on November 18, 2024 Russian troops Russians shelled Kostiantynivka, killing two people: a woman was killed instantly, and a man died in the hospital. Vadym Filashkin, head of the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration, reported that Russians fired on the town from tubed artillery.

The National Police reported then that a local resident, 61, was killed on the spot as a result of the shelling. A man, 68, was seriously injured. The injured man was taken to the hospital, where he died during resuscitation.

The police also said that two other people – a woman, 89, and a man, 46, sustained shrapnel wounds. Filashkin later that day reported that Russians killed a total of three people in attacks on Donetsk Oblast. Another person was killed by the Russians in Siversk – the city also came under artillery fire.

ZMINA consistently reports on the ongoing international crimes in the Donetsk Oblast. 

During the Munich Security Conference, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told American senators that former US president Joe Biden and US policy are the main obstacles to Ukraine’s NATO membership. He suggested Donald Trump should change this stance, expressing disappointment over the US leadership’s consistent rejection of Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration.

Zelenskyy acknowledged that Vladimir Putin wanted to start peace talks but warned that Putin’s goal was to secure a ceasefire agreement to regroup and rebuild Russian forces. This agreement would help lift international sanctions from Russia and allow it to recover and build up its military capabilities before further invasions.

He added that until Ukraine joins NATO, it needs a 1.5-million-strong army to be able to confront Russia. Zelenskyy emphasised that to achieve this goal, there is a necessity for Ukraine to collaborate with European nations. He advocates for the development of a self-reliant defence system equipped with appropriate weaponry and a well-sized military force.

Zelenskyy also pointed out that the Ukrainian Armed Forces currently have approximately half the number of combat brigades compared to Russia, underscoring the imperative to expand military capacity. Additionally, he noted that maintaining such an expanded army would require an annual budget of UAH 60 billion, up from the current UAH 40 billion, prompting considerations regarding sustainable financing strategies.

Zelenskyy also proposed forming joint European Armed Forces with Ukraine’s participation, saying the era of relying on the US is over.

Earlier, Zelenskyy stated that other countries’ failure to comply with sanctions against Russia should be treated as participation in the war against Ukraine.

Earlier, Bohdan Bernatskyy, a member of the Sanctions Policy Working Group of the Crimean Platform Expert Network, revealed at the Third Parliamentary Summit in Latvia that over 1,300 Russian military companies and 2 million industry workers continue operating, many without international restrictions.

Previously, the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine outlined a timeline for the second Peace Summit.