Zelensky accuses Russia of terrorism as Ukraine war enters new, uglier phase

A miles-long armored Russian military convoy nearing Kyiv and the targeting of civilian areas in Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv, may herald a new phase of fighting after six days of stiff Ukrainian resistance.

The latest: Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Tuesday it would strike targets in Kyiv tied to “information attacks” from Ukraine’s security services, urging Ukrainians living near such facilities to leave their homes. Soon after, images emerged of Kyiv’s TV tower surrounded by smoke. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said TV channels were off air for the time being.

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky released a new video accusing Russia of war crimes for its siege of Kharkiv, a mostly Russian-speaking city near the border that has endured some of the heaviest shelling of the conflict.
• He also spoke to the European Parliament in an emotional address on Tuesday and urged the EU to admit Ukraine as a member, saying that Ukrainians were fighting to be “equal members of Europe.” (Watch the full video).

What’s happening: Kharkiv’s historic Freedom Square — one of the largest city squares in Europe — was hit by a Russian missile strike, causing massive damage to the local city hall. “After the attack on Freedom Square in Kharkiv, Russia is a terrorist state,” Zelensky said in a new video.

• A Ukrainian military spokesman for the northern district claimed that Belarusian troops had crossed the border into the Chernihiv region, north of Kyiv. Belarus dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko still denies his troops will join the invasion.
• The southeastern port city of Mariupol has been surrounded by Russian troops and “has practically no electricity and centralized heating,” according to the mayor.
• A senior Pentagon official said Monday that seizing Mariupol and Kharkiv would allow Russia to cut off eastern Ukraine and the Ukrainian forces there.
• Zelensky has said all of Russia’s major cities are being blocked off. The mayor of Kherson, near the Russian-controlled Crimea, said in a Facebook post Tuesday that the Russian military was “setting up checkpoints at the entrances” of the city.
• Air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv again overnight, as Russian forces sought to encircle the capital. “If we protect Kyiv, we will protect the state. This is the heart of our country,” Zelensky said.
• More than 500,000 refugees have fled to neighboring countries, including Poland, Hungary, Romania and Moldova, the U.N. said.

The big picture: Peace talks ended with no sign of concessions Monday.

• The Ukrainian side emerged from the talks with little optimism, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has shown no flexibility thus far.
• Putin told French President Emmanuel Macron that Ukraine must disarm, proclaim its neutrality, and recognize Crimea as Russian, per state media.

Impact on Russia: Russia’s currency is collapsing due to unprecedented, crippling Western sanctions. Massive corporations continue to announce said they will suspend or restrict operations in Russia, most recently shipping giant Maersk.

• The Russian central bank raised interest rates from 9.5% to 20% and announced a raft of measures — including the suspension of stock trading on the Moscow Exchange — in response.

As Russia’s economy begins to unravel and its military suffers setbacks, military analysts expected the fighting to grow more intense and dangerous for civilians.

• Michael Kofman, a leading expert on Russia’s military at CNA, says Moscow’s plans of sprinting to Kyiv and forcing a swift surrender — ideally with limited Western sanctions or domestic blowback — have largely failed. He expects more artillery and air power.
• Meanwhile the military convoy, estimated to stretch over 40 miles, moved to withing 17 miles of Kyiv from the north as of Monday afternoon, according to satellite imagery from Maxar.

State of play: Russian forces have claimed the most territory in the south.

• In Berdyansk, a town near Mariupol now under Russian control, residents shouted at occupying troops to go home and sang the Ukrainian national anthem in the main square. Elsewhere, civilians have attempted to block the advance of tanks with their bodies.
• Morale appears low among Russian forces, who didn’t know until the last minute that they’d be ordered to invade a country they don’t see as an adversary, Kofman said.
• Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said any Russian soldier who voluntarily surrendered to Ukrainian captivity would receive 5 million rubles ($47,000).

NATO countries continued to promise and provide hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of weaponry.

• Norway became the latest NATO country to join the fray on Tuesday, pledging to send up to 2,000 M72 anti-tank grenade launchers to Ukraine.
• Russia warned it would hold countries that provide such weaponry responsible if they’re used to attack Russian troops.
• Former President Dmitry Medvedev also tweeted a warning Tuesday that “in human history, economic wars quite often turned into real ones.”
• As with Putin’s Sunday announcement that he would put Russia’s nuclear deterrent on alert, it was an ominous indication that this war could intensify.

For the record: A senior U.S. defense official said Monday that Russia has deployed nearly 75% of its assembled combat power inside Ukraine but has failed to achieve air superiority and is struggling with logistical issues, like military vehicles running out of fuel.

• Russia still has a good deal of capabilities “on the sidelines,” including most of its air force, Kofman said. He’s expecting a new scale of warfare in the days to come.

What else is happening: Zelensky said he’d allow prisoners with combat experience to be released to help defend Ukraine and “compensate their guilt.”

Go deeper: Get the latest with the Ukraine-Russia dashboard

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with developments in Kharkiv, Okhtyrka and Kherson.