Russo-Ukrainian crisis

Russian troops stormed toward Ukraine's capital on Feb. 26, and street fighting broke out as city officials urged residents to take shelter. The country's president refused an American offer to evacuate, insisting that he would stay. "The fight is here," he said.

Russia is ready to send a delegation for talks with Ukraine in Minsk. This was announced by the spokesman of Russian President Vladimir Putin - Dmitry Peskov, on Friday, BTA reports.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also said he was ready for talks. He called on his Russian counterpart to sit down at the negotiating table to stop the loss of human lives.

The West and its institutions, particularly NATO, should have taken more decisive steps on the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian crisis, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, stressing that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky needs more concrete support than advices from Western capitals.

"The situation has changed completely and is very dramatic. The military aggression we are witnessing is absolutely unacceptable", said Prime Minister Kirill Petkov, who is taking part in a special European Council meeting on Russia's military aggression in Ukraine.

137 Ukrainians have died since the start of the Russian offensive, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

According to him, Moscow is hitting not only military targets but also civilian targets. European Union leaders have agreed in principle to impose new economic sanctions on Russia. The United States did the same earlier.

In an interview with ABC television, Anthony Blinken said that "part of Russia's plan" is to attack the capital Kyiv and other major cities in Ukraine, as well as launch a multilateral attack on the country from the northern, eastern and southern borders.

Second day of Fighting in Ukraine, Clashes on the Outskirts of Kyiv

Sanctions imposed on Russia are not enough, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Reuters that Russia had resumed its missile strikes early this morning.

According to him, the attacks are aimed at both military and civilian targets.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Feb. 25 discussed Russia's military intervention in Ukraine in a phone call, a statement by the communications directorate said. 

According to the announcement made after the call, the two leaders addressed Russia's military intervention in Ukraine and the latest developments.

Russia pressed its invasion of Ukraine to the outskirts of the capital on Feb. 25 after unleashing airstrikes on cities and military bases and sending in troops and tanks from three sides in an attack that could rewrite the global post-Cold War security order.

"Putin has been planning this for months, we've been saying this for a long time. He has amassed more than 170.000 troops at the border. He has rejected all diplomatic efforts by the United States and allies. We have been warning for weeks that this will happen", Biden said.