Russia-Ukraine updates: US sanctions Russian military shipbuilder, diamond miner

Two people were killed on Tuesday morning after Russian forces shelled residential areas in Kyiv, officials said.

The sound of large explosions echoed across Kyiv before dawn from what Ukrainian authorities said were artillery strikes. The shelling ignited a huge fire and a frantic rescue effort in the Svyatoshyn neighborhood.

Shockwaves from an explosion also damaged the entry to a downtown subway station that has been used as a bomb shelter. City authorities tweeted an image of the blown-out facade, saying trains would no longer stop at the station.

-ABC News’ Yulia Drozd

Residents of Kherson, Melitopol and Berdyansk, cities occupied by Russian forces, have held “multiple” demonstrations protesting the occupation, the U.K. Defence Ministry said on Tuesday.

Protests in Kherson came as Russia may be making plans for a “referendum” to legitimize the region as a Russian-backed “breakaway republic,” similar to Donetsk, Luhansk and Crimea, the Ministry said.

“Further protests were reported in the city yesterday with Russian forces reportedly firing warning shots in an attempt to disperse peaceful protesters,” the Ministry said.

Russia is likely to “make further attempts to subvert Ukrainian democracy,” the update said.

“Russia has reportedly installed its own mayor in Melitopol following the alleged abduction of his predecessor on Friday 11 March,” the update said. “Subsequently, the Mayor of Dniprorudne has also reportedly been abducted by Russian forces.”

-ABC News’ Zoe Magee

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy updated the status of negotiations with Russia in his latest address Monday, saying the latest talks went "pretty good" and will continue tomorrow.

Zelenskyy also addressed Russian troops, telling them they would be treated "decently" should they surrender.

"On behalf of the Ukrainian people, I give you a chance -- chance to survive," Zelenskyy said. "You surrender to our forces, we will treat you the way people are supposed to be treated. As people, decently."

Zelenskyy also thanked the producer at a Russian state news channel who appeared on camera behind an anchor and held up an anti-war sign. She was later arrested.

"I am grateful to those Russians who do not stop trying to convey the truth," he said. "To those who fight disinformation and tell the truth, real facts to their friends and loved ones. And personally to the woman who entered the studio of Channel One with a poster against the war."

-ABC News' Matt Foster

Marie Yovanovitch, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, doubted Russia’s ability to win the war it started, "because the Ukrainian people will continue to resist."

"Ukrainians are never going to turn back to Russia at this point -- never," she told ABC News. "Not after he has invaded them and destroyed their families and destroyed their livelihoods and destroyed their homes. It is appalling what he has done, all in the name of allegedly protecting people in Ukraine. "

While Yovanovitch said she does not believe a ceasefire is currently on Russian President Vladimir Putin's agenda, "It’s important to keep the lines of communication open."

"It's important to keep on talking, at least hopefully to get humanitarian corridors set up so that people can, you know, can leave cities that are no longer habitable because of the barbaric aggressiveness of Russia," said Yovanovitch, who served as ambassador to Ukraine under Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump, between 2016 and 2019.

Yovanovitch also said she believes that Trump was dismissive of Ukraine during his presidency, adding that his praise of Putin "emboldened" the Russian leader.

"There's no question that President Trump's actions and his statements presumably emboldened Putin, and I think that Putin was getting what he needed from President Trump in terms of while our official policy was very strong with regard to supporting Ukraine," she said.

-ABC News' Penelope Lopez