Vladimir Putin considers killing of children success that meets pre-approved plan: Ukraine

Ukraine's permanent envoy to the United Nations, Serhiy Kyslytsia, said Russian President Vladimir Putin described the murder of Ukrainian children as a success that matches pre-approved objectives. According to a Ukrinform, the diplomat mentioned this at a UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting called by the US and the UK to address the situation in Ukraine amid Russia's relentless military aggression.

"The operation is going well and in strict accordance with the previously approved plan," Putin said the day before, according to Kyslytsia.

According to the Ukrainian ambassador, the world community has been puzzled for three weeks as to why Russia chose to emulate the Nazi Third Reich by assaulting a peaceful neighbouring state and throwing the region into conflict. 

"What are the reasons for that and what is the plan? And yesterday we received the answer: the murder of Ukrainian children. Today there are 108 innocent souls," Kyslytsia stated at the UNSC.

He emphasised that children are a deliberate target, in light of yesterday's shelling of the Mariupol Drama Theater, which was a safe haven for hundreds of locals, mostly women and children. "After all, the theatre was bombed despite children being clearly marked on the ground on both sides of the building. The shelter, however, survived and did not turn into another mass grave, according to Putin's pre-agreed plans," Kyslytsia added.

Putin's ambitions, he claimed, include murdering not only children but citizens in general. On Wednesday alone, 53 civilians were killed in Chernihiv by Russian bombs and shells. On the same day, a Russian military shelling in Merefa, Kharkiv Oblast, killed 21 people, destroying a local school and apartment structures.

Russia-Ukraine war: At least three explosions rock Lviv on March 18 

According to media sources, at least three explosions were heard in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv on Friday morning, with the local mayor adding that Russian missiles struck an area near Lviv's airport. Following sustained Russian shelling, the death toll has risen, with a US citizen — who had stayed in Ukraine to be with his Ukrainian spouse — being one of the most recent victims.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Artillery, multiple rocket launchers, and ballistic missiles are being used by Russian troops to shell and destroy infrastructure, as well as residential areas in Ukrainian cities and villages.

(With agency inputs, Image: AP)