Russia-Ukrain crisis | Russian troops zero in on Kyiv as 1,50,000 Ukrainians flee

Ukrainians are bracing for another night of assaults as Russian troops close in on the capital of Kyiv and skirmishes erupt on the city’s outskirts

,Ukraine Russian troops closed in on Kyiv and skirmishes flared on its outskirts on February 26 as Ukraine’s leader vowed to continue battling an invasion by a much better-armed adversary. Terrified men, women and children sought safety inside and underground amid a 39-hour curfew the Government imposed to keep people off the streets.

The United Nations said more than 1,50,000 Ukrainians had fled for Poland, Moldova and other neighbouring countries and warned the number could grow to 4 million if fighting escalates.

“We will fight for as long as needed to liberate our country,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy promised.

To aid Ukraine’s ability to hold out, the U.S. pledged an additional $350 million in military assistance to Ukraine on Feb. 26, including anti-tank weapons, body armour and small arms. Germany said it would send missiles and anti-tank weapons to the besieged country and that it would close its airspace to Russian planes.

Even as Mr. Zelenskyy called on his countrymen to join the fight, it was impossible to know how effective Ukraine has been in slowing the Russian advance. A curfew in Kyiv set to last through Monday morning forced everyone inside, though the relative quiet of the capital was sporadically broken by gunfire.

Fighting on the city’s outskirts suggested that small Russian units were trying to clear a path for the main forces. Small groups of Russian troops were reported inside Kyiv, but Britain and the U.S. said the bulk of Russian forces were 19 miles (30 kilometres) from the city’s centre as of Saturday afternoon.

Russia claims its assault on Ukraine is aimed only at military targets, but bridges, schools and residential neighbourhoods have been hit since the invasion began Thursday with air and missile strikes and Russian troops entering Ukraine from the north, east and south.