Russia pounds Ukraine’s cities and front lines as air defences dwindle

Russia destroys Ukrainian power stations and defences as an expert warns Kyiv’s troops are ‘utterly exhausted’.

Ukraine’s dwindling supply of air defence missiles enabled Russia to devastate its energy infrastructure with ever-increasing effectiveness during the past week, while its artillery shell rationing allowed Moscow’s forces to continue a slow advance on the ground.

Making matters worse, Ukraine recorded no counterattacks against energy or military targets inside Russian territory.

Meanwhile, US congressional Republicans, who have effectively frozen aid to Ukraine since December, mulled over how and when to table a new bill to approve $60bn in aid requested by the administration of President Joe Biden.

Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian foreign minister, said his embattled country was urgently demanding long-range Patriot air defence batteries it needs from European NATO allies, rather than the United States.

“Nice and quiet diplomacy didn’t work,” he told the Washington Post, saying he was on a mission to effectively force European governments with more than 100 idling batteries to give up seven – part of a larger plan to ultimately source 26.