INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russia and Ukraine failed to make a breakthrough Thursday in their first top-level talks since Moscow's invasion two weeks ago, as Russian
forces advanced on Kyiv and faced new accusations they attacked a humanitarian corridor into Mariupol.After talks with Russian counterpart
Lavrov said Moscow would keep talking.Moscow's military advances have sparked fears the capital Kyiv could soon be surrounded
Russian forces were encircling at least four major Ukrainian cities Thursday and armored vehicles rolled up to Kyiv's northeastern edge,
where suburbs including Irpin and Bucha have endured days of heavy bombardment.Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said half the population had
fled, adding that the city "has been transformed into a fortress.""Every street, every building, every checkpoint has been fortified."The
besieged southern port city of Mariupol, meanwhile, came under fresh assault Thursday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accusing
Moscow of launching a "tank attack" targeting a humanitarian corridor where he had dispatched a convoy to try to get food, water and
medicine into the city.The attack, which Zelensky described in a video statement as "outright terror," came a day after the bombing of a
children's hospital there that local officials said killed three people, including a young girl.Zelensky branded that attack a Russian
"war crime," a position backed by top Western officials.The White House slammed the "barbaric" use of force against civilians, while
European Union foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell echoed Zelensky in calling the hospital attack a "heinous war crime."The Russian army
claimed the hospital bombing was a "staged provocation" by Ukraine.Around 100,000 people have been evacuated in two days, Ukraine's
Izyum.Moscow said it would also open daily humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians to Russian territory, but Kyiv has insisted no
evacuation routes should lead to Russia.'Apocalyptic'The UN Refugee Agency estimates more than 2.3 million refugees have left Ukraine since
Russia shocked the world by invading its pro-Western neighbor on Feb
24, and some 1.9 million Ukrainians have been internally displaced.Overall, at least 71 children have been killed and more than 100 wounded
in Ukraine since the war began, said Lyudmyla Denisova, the Ukraine parliament's point person on human rights.The situation in Mariupol is
particularly dire, with 10 days of constant attacks having left more than 1,200 civilians dead, according to the mayor.The UN said in
addition to Mariupol, two other Ukrainian maternity hospitals had been attacked and destroyed, including one in Zhytomyr, west of
Kyiv.Mariupol's city council reported new Russian air attacks Thursday on residential buildings and aid agencies say it faces an
"apocalyptic" situation, with no water, power or heat for more than a week.The International Committee of the Red Cross said some residents
had started fighting for food, and many had run out of drinking water.While the hospital attack triggered global outrage, Russian defense
ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said there were no Russian air strikes in the area, and described the incident as a "staged provocation"
to stoke anti-Russian sentiment.Lavrov, at the Turkey talks, claimed Moscow's operations have been purely defensive.Asked by a Turkish
reporter if Moscow was planning to attack other nations, Lavrov replied "we don't plan to attack other countries," claiming Russia "did not
attack Ukraine."He said Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the operation as the situation in Ukraine "posed a direct threat to the
Russian Federation."'Nowhere to run'On Kyiv's northeastern edge, Ukrainian soldiers described fierce fighting for control of the main
highway leading into the capital.An AFP team witnessed missile strikes in Velyka Dymerka just outside Kyiv's city limits.Ukrainian forces
only had minimal presence in the village, which locals said witnessed heavy battles overnight."It's frightening, but what can you do?"
said Vasyl Popov, a 38-year-old advertising salesman
"There is nowhere to really run or hide
Russian control: Chernobyl, location of the world's worst nuclear disaster, in 1986, and Zaporizhzhia, Europe's largest nuclear
plant.The UN's atomic watchdog IAEA warned of a "dire" situation, with power out at the Chernobyl plant and all communications with
"ready to work" with the agency to ensure nuclear safety.Chelsea owner targetedWith global anger surging online as the war rages, Facebook
said late Thursday it has temporarily eased its rules regarding violent speech to allow statements like "death to Russian invaders," but not
credible threats against Russian civilians.Washington has strongly backed Ukraine, leading the push for tough international sanctions and
sending weapons and other aid
A $14 billion Ukraine assistance package is making its way through Congress.But the United States has ruled out enforcing a no-fly zone,
and rejected a Polish plan to transfer fighter jets to Ukraine via a United States air base for fear of being drawn directly into the
conflict.State Department spokesman Ned Price said ground-based defense systems have proven effective against Russia's "formidable" air
force."We will continue to provide our Ukrainian partners with the surface-to-air systems that they need to take on the threat that they
face from Russian missiles, from Russian rockets, from artillery," he said Thursday.Lavrov, however, warned the supply of deadly weapons to
Ukraine was "creating a colossal danger" for countries providing them.Western sanctions have targeted Russia's financial system and its
oligarchs, including Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich, who was hit Thursday by a U.K
assets freeze and travel ban.
