Russia has been widely condemned for bombarding cities across Ukraine, including the first missile strikes on Kyiv’s centre.
US condemns Russia’s ‘brutal’ strikes on Ukraine.
The US said the “brutal” attacks targeted non-military targets such as a university and a children’s playground, and it promised more military assistance.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed “deep shock.”
Vladimir Putin said the attacks were in retaliation for an explosion on a key bridge connecting Russia to Crimea on Saturday.
Ukraine claims 83 missiles were launched, more than 43 of which were shot down.
The deadly barrage included strikes on the cities of Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, and Zaporizhzhia, and was among the worst seen in Ukraine in months.
According to officials, at least 14 people were killed and scores more were injured.
After missiles struck energy infrastructure, several regions were left without power and water.
Residents in Kyiv’s capital said Russia appeared to be targeting civilian areas, including a children’s playground, a university, and the popular Taras Shevchenko park, which were busy with Monday morning commuters.
In the most widespread bombardment of the war, Russian missiles began hitting targets across Ukraine around the morning rush hour on Monday.
They were intended to cause panic, according to Ihor Zhovkva, deputy head of President Zelensky’s office.
The strikes were more intense than previously seen, he told the BBC, and resembled the early days of the war in some ways.
He added that this had not surprised him and was a foreshadowing of what was to come during the “very difficult” winter ahead.
Mr Putin has warned that he is willing to authorise more “Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of the Russian Security Council, said that “the first episode has been played.” Others will follow “.
“Ukraine is not just contemplating, but planning strikes on the territory of Belarus,” he said, adding that Kyiv was being “pushed by their patrons to unleash a war against Belarus” and Russia at the same time.
“We saw it, we knew it, we formed battalion tactical groups, and we practised border defence, which we are doing now,” he said.
In recent years, Mr. Lukashenko has become increasingly reliant on Russia for economic, political, and military support, and Russian forces used Belarus as a base when they invaded Ukraine in February.
