KYIV, Ukraine (AP) 鈥 A Russian ballistic missile strike Friday on a central Ukrainian city killed at least 14 people, including six children, Ukrainian officials said, as U.S. and European leaders pressed Russia to accept a ceasefire in the conflict.
At least 50 people were wounded in the strike on Kryvyi Rih 鈥 the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy 鈥 in what the region鈥檚 leader Serhii Lysak described as an 鈥渁ssault against civilians.鈥
鈥淭he missile struck an area right next to residential buildings 鈥 hitting a playground and ordinary streets,鈥 Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram.
Local authorities said the strike damaged about 20 apartment buildings, more than 30 vehicles, an educational building and a restaurant. They said emergency responders were at the scene and psychologists were helping survivors.
Zelenskyy blamed the daily strikes on Russia鈥檚 unwillingness to end the war: 鈥淓very missile, every drone strike proves Russia wants only war.鈥 He urged Ukraine鈥檚 allies to increase pressure on Moscow and bolster Ukraine鈥檚 air defenses.
鈥淭he United States, Europe, and the rest of the world have enough power to make Russia abandon terror and war,鈥 he said.
Russia resists calls for an immediate ceasefire
Russia has effectively rejected for a full and immediate 30-day halt in the fighting, and the U.K. and French foreign ministers on Friday accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of dragging his feet in ceasefire talks to halt Russia鈥檚 .
鈥淥ur judgment is that Putin continues to obfuscate, continues to drag his feet,鈥 U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy told reporters at NATO headquarters, standing alongside French counterpart Jean-No毛l Barrot in a symbolic show of unity.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Russia鈥檚 real intentions in the negotiations will become clear within weeks.
鈥淲e will know from their answers very soon whether they are serious about proceeding with real peace or whether it鈥檚 a delay tactic,鈥 Rubio told reporters. 鈥淣ow we鈥檝e reached the stage where we need to make progress.鈥
A Kremlin envoy who visited Washington this week for talks with Trump administration officials said Friday that further meetings would be needed to resolve outstanding issues.
Kirill Dmitriev told Russian reporters that 鈥渢he dialogue will take some time, but it鈥檚 proceeding positively and constructively.鈥
He criticized what he called a 鈥渨ell-coordinated media campaign and attempts by various politicians to spoil Russia-U.S. relations, distort what Russia says, and cast Russia and its leaders in a negative way.鈥
Dmitriev, the head of Russia鈥檚 sovereign wealth fund, was sanctioned by the Biden administration after Moscow launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. The U.S. had to temporarily lift the restrictions to allow him to travel to Washington this week.
Kharkiv is struck by drones
The missile strike on Kryvyi Rih followed a drone attack late Thursday on Kharkiv, Ukraine鈥檚 second-largest city, that killed five civilians. Emergency crews carried black body bags from a burning apartment building as onlookers wept and hugged in the dark.
Some of the 32 wounded, bloodied and in shock, limped out into the street or were carried on stretchers as flames shot from the windows of their homes.
Civilian areas in three other Ukrainian regions were also hit in Russian attacks overnight, officials said. The Ukrainian air force said that Russia fired 78 strike and decoy drones.
Russia鈥檚 Defense Ministry said that its air defenses destroyed 107 Ukrainian drones.
鈥楻ussia has been flip-flopping鈥
Barrot said that Ukraine had accepted ceasefire terms three weeks ago, and that Russia now "owes an answer to the United States.鈥
U.S. President Donald Trump has with Putin and Zelenskyy, after he promised last year to bring the war to a swift conclusion.
鈥淩ussia has been flip-flopping, continuing its strikes on energy infrastructure, continuing its war crimes,鈥 Barrot said. 鈥淚t has to be a quick answer.鈥
He said that Russia shows no intention of halting its military campaign, noting that Putin on Monday ordered a call-up intended to draft 160,000 conscripts for a one-year tour of compulsory military service.
The two foreign ministers pledged to continue helping to build up Ukraine鈥檚 armed forces 鈥 the country鈥檚 best security guarantee since the U.S. took any prospect of NATO membership off the table.
Moscow鈥檚 measured approach to the ceasefire negotiations hasn't surprised Western observers, because its army has momentum on the battlefield.
That momentum allows Russia 鈥渟ome strategic patience,鈥 according to U.S. intelligence community annual threat assessment, published last month. It said Russia had seized the 鈥渦pper hand," giving it 鈥済reater leverage鈥 in negotiations to end the war.
鈥楥oalition of the willing鈥 needs more time
Zelenskyy said Friday that Ukraine and its allies need 鈥渙ne more month 鈥 no more鈥 to complete the infrastructure needed for a so-called 鈥渃oalition of the willing,鈥 a multinational force that could secure a truce against further Russian aggression.
The U.K. and France have been leading efforts to build the coalition over the past two months. A senior Ukrainian official said earlier this week that between 10 and 12 countries have said they are ready to join.
鈥淲e are discussing a presence on land, in the air, and at sea,鈥 Zelenskyy said at a news conference in Kyiv on Friday following an organizational meeting for the coalition. Defense ministers from the group will meet at NATO headquarters next Thursday.
Russia rebuilds its military
Gen. Christopher Cavoli, the top U.S. general in Europe, said at a hearing before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington on Thursday that Russia is rebuilding its military strength.
Russian forces on the front line in Ukraine now number more than 600,000 troops, he said. That is the highest number in the war and almost double the size of the initial invasion force, he said, and Russia is on track to replace all the tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and air defense systems it has lost so far.
In addition, Cavoli said, Russia is set to produce 250,000 artillery shells a month, allowing it to build a stockpile three times bigger than those of the U.S. and Europe combined.
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Lorne Cook contributed from Brussels.
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