As Zelensky asks for more international backing, a brutal onslaught rages in Ukraine.

As the bombings continue, Russia is coming under increasing fire for its invasion of Ukraine, with US President Joe Biden blasting Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in his State of the Union address on Tuesday for waging a "premeditated and unprovoked war."

Mar 2, 2022 - 10:19 Updated: Mar 2, 2022 - 12:07

As Zelensky asks for more international backing, a brutal onslaught rages in Ukraine.

Russia's deadly assault on Ukraine is raging on numerous fronts, but despite desperate demands for additional international help, Ukraine is essentially on its own in the face of Moscow's advance.

On Tuesday, key cities in Ukraine were assaulted from multiple directions, with Russia initiating assaults on structures in the capital, Kyiv.
According to Russian state news agency TASS, Russian troops have taken complete control of the southern city of Kherson, even though the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense denies the city has fallen and claims that some areas remain under Ukrainian control.

CNN was unable to confirm Russia's allegations right away, but video and social media posts authenticated by CNN offered further proof that Russians are traveling throughout the city seemingly unhindered.
According to Ukraine's State Emergency Service and CNN videos geolocated in Kharkiv, a Wednesday early strike on the regional police station and Kharkiv National University left the facilities ablaze in flames.
According to the United Nations, at least 136 people have been dead, including 13 children, and another 400 civilians have been injured since Russia attacked on Thursday, though the true toll is likely to be significantly higher.

As the bombings continue, Russia is coming under increasing fire for its invasion of Ukraine, with US President Joe Biden blasting Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in his State of the Union address on Tuesday for waging a "premeditated and unprovoked war."

"Putin is now more isolated from the rest of the world than he has ever been," Biden said as he imposed a ban on Russian planes and airlines flying through US airspace.
However, while the US and NATO members have assisted Ukraine by sharing armaments, military equipment, and intelligence while putting harsh sanctions on Russia, the alliance has made it clear that it has no plans to send troops into Ukraine, a position Biden underlined in his speech on Tuesday.

"I've spoken to Biden many times," Zelensky told CNN's, Matthew Chance. "And I've told them many times that Ukraine will resist and fight stronger than anyone else but on our own, against Russia, we won't manage it."

Onslaught in Ukraine

As Russia launched strikes on key cities Tuesday, Zelensky warned Russia was indiscriminately attacking Ukrainian citizens and historical landmarks.

"As you can see, no one is being very careful about the targets. We see the children are being killed," he said. "We are defending our right to life."

The UK Ministry of Defense said in its latest intelligence update Tuesday that Russia had increased its air and artillery strikes against densely populated urban areas across Ukraine over the past 48 hours. Russian forces had encircled the cities of Kharkiv, Kherson, and Mariupol, it added.

A 40-mile Russian convoy of tanks, armored vehicles, and towed artillery continues to edge toward the Ukrainian capital, according to satellite images from Maxar Technologies. A US official said the convoy has been stalled due to fuel supply issues, while the UK said in its latest intelligence update that the column continues to make slow progress toward Kyiv.

In Kyiv, sick children are being treated in a hospital's underground bomb shelters. A missile hit a private maternity clinic near the capital Kyiv on Tuesday, leaving the clinic damaged but still standing, according to the Adonis maternity clinic chief Vitaliy Gyrin's Facebook post. Separately, a military strike tore through two apartment blocks in a town west of Kyiv.

Russian forces also struck a Holocaust memorial site in Kyiv and they fired rockets that landed near a TV tower. In a statement Wednesday, Russia's Ministry of Defense acknowledged carrying out long-range strikes with precision weapons on communications infrastructure in Ukraine.

Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, was rocked by at least two large explosions on Tuesday evening in the city's north, a resident said.

New videos posted to social media early Wednesday and verified by CNN showed badly damaged buildings in western Kharkiv in an area with markets, stores, and residential buildings. The damage is unrelated to a major explosion that took part in the northern part of the city.

And fighting took place overnight in the city between Russian and Ukrainian militaries near a Kharkiv military hospital, the head of the local police told Ukraine's public broadcaster, Suspilne News. It's unclear whether the explosion and reported fighting are related.

International response

As the civilian death toll rises, the international community is stepping up pressure on Putin, leaving Russia increasingly isolated.

Biden said the US stood with Ukraine, adding "let us continue to draw inspiration from the iron will of the Ukrainian people."

US oil and gas company ExxonMobil pledged Tuesday to leave its last remaining oil-and-gas project in Russia, while a spokesperson for US multinational Boeing confirmed in a statement to CNN that the company has suspended major operations in Moscow and temporarily closed its office in Kyiv.

However, Zelensky has asked the international community to do more, urging the US and NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine or send in troops.
"Everyone must act quickly if they wish to aid us," Zelensky continued. "Now is the time."
If Russia seizes control of its country, Zelensky predicts unrest in NATO member states. "If Ukraine fails, all of these forces will be stationed on your borders, in Poland and Lithuania, and you will face much more problems. There will be more provocations there, I'm sure "he stated.

Biden emphasized Tuesday in his speech that the US will not send troops to Ukraine, which is not a NATO member.
Instead, US forces were stationed in Europe to "protect our NATO partners if Putin continues to move west."
In his statement on Tuesday, he stated, "As I've made clear, the United States and our Allies will defend every inch of the territory of NATO countries with the full weight of our combined power."
"Putin's assault on Ukraine will leave Russia weaker and the rest of the world stronger when this era's history is written."

After reporting that 677,000 people had fled Ukraine to neighboring nations in "less than a week," the United Nations made an emergency appeal to help them.
In a statement, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said, "We are looking at what might become Europe's worst refugee catastrophe this century."