Russia-Ukraine updates: Putin suspends key US-Russia nuclear treaty in speech denouncing West
President Vladimir Putin said he'd sought an "open dialogue" with the West.
Almost a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, the two countries are engaged in a struggle for control of areas throughout the east and south.
Putin's forces pulled out of key positions in November, retreating from Kherson as Ukrainian troops led a counteroffensive targeting the southern port city. Russian drones have continued bombarding civilian targets throughout Ukraine, knocking out critical power infrastructure as winter sets in.
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Latest headlines:
3 civilians killed in ballistic missile strike in Kramatorsk
At least three people were killed and 21 injured in Kramatorsk after a Russian ballistic missile hit a residential building, Mayor Alexander Goncharenko said.
"Some people are still under the rubble. No goal other than terror," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday evening. "The only way to stop Russian terrorism is to defeat it. By tanks. Fighter jets. Long-range missiles."
-ABC News' William Gretsky
US issues additional sanctions against Russian military-industrial complex
The U.S. Treasury Department announced a new round of sanctions against 22 individuals and entities across various countries it alleges have aided Russia's military-industrial complex evade other sanctions already in place. The U.S. is specifically targeting a father and son arms-dealing duo and their vast international network.
The department said these steps are part of "the U.S. strategy to methodically and intensively target sanctions evasion efforts around the globe, close down key backfilling channels, expose facilitators and enablers, and limit Russia’s access to revenue needed to wage its brutal war in Ukraine."
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Human Rights Watch calls on Ukraine to investigate use of landmines in Izium
Human Rights Watch is calling on Ukraine to investigate its military's "apparent use of thousands of rocket-fired antipersonnel landmines in and around the eastern city of Izium where Russian forces occupied the area."
The international non-governmental organization issued a press release on Monday saying it has "documented numerous cases in which rockets carrying PFM antipersonnel mines, also called 'butterfly mines' or 'petal mines,' were fired into Russian-occupied areas near Russian military facilities." Ukraine is a state party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, which prohibits any use of antipersonnel mines.
Human Rights Watch said it has previously documented Russian forces’ use of antipersonnel landmines in Ukraine in 2022.
"Ukrainian forces appear to have extensively scattered landmines around the Izium area, causing civilian casualties and posing an ongoing risk," Steve Goose, arms division director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. "Russian forces have repeatedly used antipersonnel mines and committed atrocities across the country, but this doesn't justify Ukrainian use of these prohibited weapons."
Reports of 3 dead, 6 wounded in Kherson from Russian shelling: Zelenskyy
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy highlighted the Russian shelling of Kherson in his evening address Sunday, saying there are "reports of six wounded and three dead" from the recent shelling.
"Today, the Russian army has been shelling Kherson atrociously all day. Residential buildings, various social and transport facilities, including a hospital, post office and bus station, have been damaged," Zelenskyy said. "Two women, nurses, were wounded in the hospital. As of now, there are reports of six wounded and three dead."
Zelenskyy spoke with the president-elect of the Czech Republic Sunday and invited him to come to Ukraine, he said.
Zelenskyy also noted the progress that was made last week in getting NATO members and allied countries to commit to sending more weapons to Ukraine, but added, "We have to make the next week no less powerful for our defense."
-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman