'Dire' humanitarian situation in besieged Ukraine cities

Ukrainian soldiers carried a comrade's body out of debris Saturday at a military school hit by Russian rockets in Mykolaiv

The humanitarian situation was deteriorating in besieged Ukrainian cities under relentless Russian bombardment on Sunday, as Kyiv called on Moscow's ally Beijing to "condemn Russian barbarism". 

In an apparent escalation of the conflict, Moscow on Saturday claimed it had used hypersonic missiles in Ukraine in what would be the first combat use of the next-generation weapons.

Aid agencies have warned they are struggling to reach hundreds of thousands of people trapped by the invading Russian forces.

Russia said Saturday its forces had broken through the defences of the besieged port and were now inside the war-torn city, which has been under relentless bombardment.

"To do such a thing to a peaceful city, what the occupiers have done, this is a terror that will be remembered even in the next century," he said.

"The economic losses for Ukraine are immense," tweeted lawmaker Lesia Vasylenko, who posted a video showing thick columns of smoke rising from an industrial complex.

"This is no longer Mariupol, it's hell," said resident Tamara Kavunenko, 58. "The streets are full with the bodies of civilians."

"In Chernigiv, indiscriminate artillery shelling in residential neighbourhoods continues, killing dozens of civilians, children and women," mayor Vladislav Atroshenko said on television.

- Dire situation -

"The challenge is to get to the cities that are encircled or about to be encircled," emergency coordinator Jakob Kern told AFP, describing the situation as "dire".

In western Ukraine, Russia claimed Saturday it had used Kinzhal (Dagger) hypersonic missiles to destroy an arms depot.

"Fundamentally this does not change anything on the battlefield, but it gives a certain psychological and propaganda effect to scare everyone," he told AFP.

- 'Strategy of attrition' -

"Gaining control of the air was one of Russia's principal objectives for the opening days of the conflict and their continued failure to do so has significantly blunted their operational progress," it tweeted.

"This is likely to involve the indiscriminate use of firepower resulting in increased civilian casualties, destruction of Ukrainian infrastructure, and intensify the humanitarian crisis," it warned.

"This is the time to meet, to talk, time for renewing territorial integrity and fairness for Ukraine," he said in a video posted on social media. 

Russia carried out air raids on the southern city of Mykolaiv in quick succession Saturday, Vitaly Kim, head of the regional administration, said, a day after a deadly strike on a military barracks there.

- Appeals to China -

China could play an important role in global security, top Zelensky advisor Mikhailo Podolyak tweeted Saturday, "if it makes a right decision to support the civilised countries' coalition and condemn Russian barbarism."

Xi said the war was "in no one's interest," but showed no sign of giving in to the pressure to join Western condemnation of Russia.

But his counterpart Narendra Modi made no direct mention of Ukraine and their joint written statement afterwards called only "for an immediate cessation of violence".

The export ban aims to impact aluminium production in Russia, which relies on Australia for 20 percent of its alumina.

Russia wants Ukraine to disarm and disavow all Western alliances, in particular to renounce joining NATO or to seek closer integration with the European Union -- steps that Kyiv says would turn it into a vassal state of Moscow.

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