New Delhi: New satellite images show that a Russian military convoy – almost 64 kilometres long – was steadily moving towards the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv from the north.
This is more than double the length of the convoy — 17 miles or 37 km — reported earlier, The Guardian said.
US-based Maxar Technologies released these images Monday evening, soon after the intense five-hour talks between the two countries at the Belarus border ended in nought.
Maxar Technologies also said additional ground forces deployment and ground attack helicopter units were seen in southern Belarus, less than 20 miles (32 km) north of the Ukraine border, Reuters reported.
Maxar identified fuel and logistic trucks, in addition to tanks, infantry vehicles and self-propelled artillery moving in the convoy.
Satellite images geolocated the convoy as stretching from the Antonov airbase – around 27 kilometres from the centre of Kyiv – to north of Pribyrsk, near the Belarus border. Every road northwest of the Ukrainian capital, ends in Belarus, the CNN reported.
The report added: “It’s easy to trace where those hundreds of tanks, towed artillery, armoured and logistical vehicles came from. Just follow the roads. All roads lead to Belarus northwest of Kyiv.”
It has been reported that Russia sent massive troops to Belarus before the invasion, plus military vehicles and aircraft to ostensibly participate in “joint exercises” between the two countries. However, after the drills ended, Russian troops did not go home, instead the country added to the military already stationed there, the CNN said.
Throughout Monday, Russia bombed residential areas in Ukraine’s second-largest city Kharkiv, killing at least nine people, including three children, Mayor Ihor Terekhov has said. Several explosions were also heard in the centre of Kyiv.
Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova shared photos on Facebook of Kharkiv homes that had been hit by projectiles. She described the situation in the city as “more hellish than yesterday”. She said a woman’s leg was torn off in the attack and that she later died in hospital.
Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of war crimes for bombing Kharkiv. He reiterated that there “can be fair negotiations if one side does not hit the other side with rocket artillery at the time of negotiations”.
The UN said at least 406 civilians have been reported hurt or killed since Russia’s assault last week.
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