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Shelling hit southern Ukraine late on Saturday while Russia sought to defend its seven-month old war at the United Nations even as it moves to escalate the conflict.
Kyiv and Western nations say referendums in territories Russia has seized by force are a sham designed to justify a ramping up of hostilities with newly drafted troops, after battlefield losses in Ukraine in recent weeks.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov addressed the U.N. General Assembly and the world’s press on Saturday, casting opposition to Russia’s assault on its neighbor as limited to Washington and countries under its sway. Nearly three-quarters of countries in the assembly voted to reprimand Russia and demand it withdraw its troops shortly after the Feb. 24 invasion.
Kyiv and Moscow traded blame for shelling in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region on Saturday.
