On Monday, 18 people were killed and more than 60 injured after two Russian long-range missiles struck a crowded shopping mall in the central city of Kremenchuk, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky calling it “one of the most defiant terrorist attacks in European history” that may lead to an “unimaginable” number of casualties.
According to Zelensky, most of the 1,000 people at the mall managed to leave when the air raid warning sign sounded. However, the death toll could rise as the emergency services are still searching through the rubble. In fact, about 40 people have been reported missing from the building.
I am now in #Kremenchuk, at the site of the tragedy.
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) June 27, 2022
The whole world should see #RussianWarCrimes in #Ukraine.
English subtitles pic.twitter.com/e0DoocnTNu
“Russia continues to take out its impotence on ordinary citizens. It is useless to hope for decency and humanity from Russia,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram.
The Ukrainian Air Force Command revealed that two long-range X-22 missiles fired from Tu-22 M3 fighter jets in the Kursk region that took off from the Shaykovka airfield in Russia's Kaluga area struck the shopping centre and a sports arena in Kremenchuk. As per video footage released by Ukrainian government officials, the missile strike led to a massive fire that took 300 emergency rescue workers four hours to control.
Large shopping mall in Kremenchuk with hundreds of civilians inside has been hit by a Russian strike. Russia is a disgrace to humanity and it must face consequences. The response should be more heavy arms for Ukraine, more sanctions on Russia, and more businesses leaving Russia. pic.twitter.com/Uvi6fbyShK
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) June 27, 2022
Kremenchuk, which lies on the Dnipro river in the Poltava region, hosts Ukraine’s largest oil refinery. According to Kremenchuk Mayor Vitaliy Maletskiy, the missiles “hit a very crowded area, which is 100% certain not to have any links to the armed forces.”
Similarly, Zelensky claimed that the area had “no strategic value,” adding, “Just the attempt of people to live a normal life, which angers the occupiers so much.” In a similar vein, the head of Poltava Regional Military Administration, Dmytro Lunin, called it “an undisguised and cynical act of terror against the civilian population,” asserting that there was no military target nearby that the Russian forces could have been targeting.
Sickening. Absolutely sickening. The @UN Security Council will meet tomorrow to discuss Russia’s atrocities against civilians. We must continue to hold Russia accountable. https://t.co/RuBx8IFGay
— Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield (@USAmbUN) June 27, 2022
Calling it a “calculated” attack in his nightly address, Zelensky further condemned Russia as the “largest terrorist organisation in the world,” urging the United States (US) to add it to its list of state sponsors of terrorism. “And everyone in the world must know that buying or transporting Russian oil, maintaining contacts with Russian banks, paying taxes and customs duties to the Russian state means giving money to terrorists,” he remarked.
Though the Russian Defence Ministry claimed responsibility for the attack, it denied any civilian casualties, claiming that it had struck a weapons depot to strike the American and European ammunition supplies for Ukrainian forces. “The detonation of the munitions for western weaponry in storage led to a fire in a non-functioning shopping centre next to the factory,” Defence Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov admitted on Tuesday.
Looks like we are dealing with a new #Bucha-style #Ukrainian provocation. One should wait for what our Ministry of Defence will say, but there are too many striking discrepancies already. Exactly what Kiev regime needs to keep focus of attention on #Ukraine before #NATOSummit https://t.co/1apOc8nAlx
— Dmitry Polyanskiy (@Dpol_un) June 27, 2022
Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Dmitry Polyansky alleged multiple discrepancies in reports on the strike without citing any evidence, saying that the attack was a “Ukrainian provocation.” Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilian infrastructure, despite having launched assaults on theatres, hospitals, kindergartens and apartment buildings throughout its four-month-long invasion.
Mentioning three motives for the airstrike, Vadym Denysenko, an advisor from Ukraine’s interior ministry, said, “The first, undoubtedly, is to sow panic, the second is to destroy our infrastructure, and the third is to raise the stakes to get the civilised West to sit down again at the table for talks.”
Russia’s bombing of a shopping centre in Kremenchuk is an abomination. We share the pain of the victims’ families, and the anger in the face of such an atrocity. The Russian people have to see the truth:pic.twitter.com/7drortbGSE
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 27, 2022
The attack comes against the backdrop of the G7 summit in Germany, wherein the leaders condemned the “abominable attack” in a joint statement, saying, “Indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constitute a war crime. Russian President Putin and those responsible will be held to account.”
They also vowed to impose new sanctions against Russia and pledged to provide financial, humanitarian and military support to Ukraine “for as long as it takes.” “We will not rest until Russia ends its cruel and senseless war on Ukraine,” the statement noted.
Russia striking a shopping mall in Kremenchuk with hundreds of civilians is a disgrace to humanity, another horrific Russia's war crime. Ukraine needs larger supply of air missile defense systems. Delivered in larger quantities and faster. Stand by Ukraine!
— Gitanas Nausėda (@GitanasNauseda) June 27, 2022
According to the Ukrainian Defence Ministry, Russia launched more than 50 air, sea and ground-based missiles over the weekend, targeting Kyiv and Kharkiv, among other cities. Additionally, Iskander missiles were also deployed from Belarusian territory for the first time, with Zelensky declaring that Moscow wants to draw Minsk into war and “wants to sow hatred between us.”
“A lot now depends on the ordinary people of Belarus. And I know that you can refuse to participate in this war,” Zelensky stressed.
Yet another horrifying news from Ukraine. Russia bombed a shopping centre in #Kremenchuk with over 1000 peaceful people inside. Russia continues to terrorise civilians and destroy life in #Ukraine. This cannot be tolerated - they can never win and war criminals will face justice.
— Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) June 27, 2022
Meanwhile, a source told CNN that the US has already purchased an advanced, medium to long-range surface-to-air missile defence system for Ukraine.
Following Zelensky’s virtual speech at the G7 summit on Monday, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan revealed that the Ukrainian president wanted Kyiv to be in “as advantageous a position on the battlefield as possible in the next months as opposed to the next years, because he believes that a grinding conflict is not in the interest of the Ukrainian people.”
Another source admitted that Zelensky wants the war to be over before winter this year.