Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Vladimir Putin has started World War III and must be stopped in comments made ahead of the four-year anniversary of the conflict.
The Ukrainian leader insisted Putin’s invasion had started a wider conflict impacting the global order and urged for intense military and economic pressure against Russia.
“I believe that Putin has already started it [WW3],” he told the BBC.
“The question is how much territory he will be able to seize and how to stop him… Russia wants to impose on the world a different way of life and change the lives people have chosen for themselves.”
The comments come amid fraught ongoing trilateral discussions to secure a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
As the war approaches its four-year anniversary, Russia insists Ukraine surrender key territory while Zelensky is reluctant to any agreement that does not contain robust security guarantees.
It comes after a night of horror in Ukraine as Russian drones and missiles targeted energy infrastructure in southern Odesa region overnight, causing significant fires, the country’s emergency service said.
One person was killed and at least eight rescued from the rubble. Ukraine's Air Force said Russia's barrage included 297 drones and 50 missiles, of which 274 drones and 33 missiles were shot down or neutralized.
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South Korea urges Russian embassy to remove 'victory' banner as Ukraine war anniversary nears
South Korea has asked the Russian embassy in Seoul to take down a large banner reading "Victory will be ours", its foreign ministry said, just ahead of this week's fourth anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine.
The ministry said in a statement on Sunday that it had conveyed its concerns to the embassy without clarifying whether it had received a response.
The roughly 15-metre (49.21 ft) banner, in the colours of the Russian flag and written in Russian, was hung on the embassy's outer wall in central Seoul ahead of the fourth anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Tuesday.
The banner remained in place on Monday.
In its statement, the ministry reiterated South Korea's position that Russia's invasion of Ukraine is illegal.
The ministry also said that military cooperation between Russia and North Korea should stop, describing it as a grave threat to South Korea's security and a violation of the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions.
Earlier this month, Russian ambassador to South Korea Georgy Zinoviev praised what he described as North Korean troops' role in fighting in Russia's Kursk region, according to media reports.
Arpan Rai23 February 2026 04:12
Lviv attack: Bomb explosions kill police officer and injure 24
One police officer was killed and 24 people were wounded after several explosive devices detonated at midnight in Lviv, in western Ukraine, the National Police said on Sunday, in an attack president Volodymyr Zelensky blamed on Russia.
"It has been preliminarily established that homemade explosive devices detonated," the police officials said.
Lviv mayor Andriy Sadovyi described the incident as a terrorist act and said a 23-year-old policewoman had died. Twelve people remained in hospital, two in serious condition, he said.
Interior minister Ihor Klymenko said a woman had been detained in connection with the investigation.
The police said that the first explosion occurred after a patrol crew arrived at the suspected scene of a shop break-in, while the second explosion occurred a little later.
Arpan Rai23 February 2026 03:52
Power restored to most households in Ukraine's Russia-controlled Zaporizhzhia
Emergency crews have restored power to most areas hit by cuts after a major Ukrainian attack on energy infrastructure, the Russia-installed governor of the part of Zaporizhzhia region controlled by Moscow said.
Yevgeny Balitsky said power supplies had been restored to all but 12,000 households in a single district. Emergency crews were working to complete the job, he said.
Balitsky had earlier said two power outages had occurred in the region in southeastern Ukraine. Workers had already restored power to 50 per cent of the region and generators were supporting critical infrastructure.
In Russian-controlled Luhansk in Ukraine's northeast, a fuel reservoir caught fire after a Ukrainian drone attack on an oil depot, Leonid Pasechnik, the Moscow-installed leader, said.
Arpan Rai23 February 2026 03:41
Pope says peace in Ukraine 'cannot be postponed'
Pope Leo made an impassioned appeal on Sunday for peace in Ukraine, saying an end to the four-year-old conflict "cannot be postponed" as the United States tries to broker an elusive accord between Moscow and Kyiv.
Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbour on February 24, 2022, used drones and ballistic and cruise missiles in its latest attacks overnight, the Ukrainian military and local officials said on Sunday.
"My heart goes out again to the dramatic situation that everyone can see," the pope said during his weekly address to pilgrims in St. Peter's Square after a Sunday prayer.
"So many victims, so many broken lives and families, so much destruction, so much unspeakable suffering."
The US has been seeking to mediate between the two sides, but progress has been halting, with Russia demanding Ukraine withdraw from parts of the eastern Donbas region it still controls, an idea Kyiv has rejected.
"Peace cannot be postponed," the pope said. "It is an urgent necessity that must find space in hearts and be translated into responsible decisions."
He said war was a "wound inflicted on the entire human family", which leaves behind "death, devastation, and a trail of pain that marks generations."
Arpan Rai23 February 2026 03:18
Ukraine attack seriously damages infrastructure in Russia's Belgorod
A massive Ukrainian missile attack inflicted serious damage on energy infrastructure and disrupted supplies of power, heat and water in Russia's Belgorod region on the border with Ukraine, the region’s governor said.
"There has been, as a result, serious damage to energy infrastructure," governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram on Monday.
"In residences, there are interruptions in supplies of electricity, water and heat."
Gladkov said the attack affected both the city of Belgorod, 40km (25 miles) from the border, and the surrouding area. He said the extent of damage would be assessed at first light.
Belgorod has frequently come under attack from Ukrainian forces in the conflict whose fourth anniversary will be marked this week.
Arpan Rai23 February 2026 03:11
After 4 years of war by Russia in Ukraine, peace is still elusive despite a US push for a settlement
When Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine surpassed 1,418 days last month, it officially exceeded a historic milestone — the same span of time it took Moscow to defeat Nazi Germany in World War II.
And unlike the Red Army that pushed all the way to Berlin eight decades ago in what it called the Great Patriotic War, Russia's 4-year-old, all-out invasion of its neighbor is still struggling to fully capture Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland.
After Moscow failed to seize the capital of Kyiv and install a puppet government in February 2022, the conflict turned into trench warfare with tremendous cost. By some estimates, nearly 2 million soldiers are dead, wounded or missing on both sides in Europe’s most devastating conflict since World War II.
After 4 years of war by Russia in Ukraine, peace is still elusive despite a US push for a settlement
When Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine surpassed 1,418 days last month, it officially exceeded a historic milestone — the same span of time it took Moscow to defeat Nazi Germany in World War IIMaira Butt23 February 2026 02:00
In case you missed it: Former UK PM Boris Johnson says UK should immediately send non-combat troops to Ukraine
Former prime minister Boris Johnson has called for troops from the UK and Europe to be deployed immediately to Ukraine.
Mr Johnson said non-combat forces should be stationed in peaceful regions to send a firm message to Russian president Vladimir Putin otherwise the Russian leader would “keep going” with the conflict.
Speaking ahead of the four-year anniversary of the invasion, the former politician told BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that Ukraine’s allies had been “too slow” to respond.
“We've always delayed needlessly,” he said. “We've then ended up giving the Ukrainians what they have been asking for, and actually it's always served to their advantage and to the disadvantage of Putin. I mean, the one person who suffers from escalation is Putin.”
Maira Butt23 February 2026 01:00
Hungary threatens to block EU sanctions on Russia over Ukraine pipeline dispute
Hungary has threatened to block a new package of European Union sanctions against Russia and stall efforts to help Ukraine, demanding the immediate resumption of Russian oil deliveries.
This ultimatum precedes a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday to discuss the bloc's 20th round of sanctions, hoping for approval by the fourth anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Tuesday.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced his intention to block the sanctions in a social media video on Sunday, accusing Ukraine of deliberately withholding Russian oil shipments via the Druzhba pipeline.
Hungary threatens block EU sanctions on Russia over Ukraine pipeline dispute
A unanimous decision from the 27-nation bloc is required for the sanctions to passMaira Butt23 February 2026 00:01
Watch: Life growing up in a cold and dark Ukraine under constant Russian attack
Maira Butt22 February 2026 23:00
Putin has started WW3, says Zelensky
President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russian leader Vladimir Putin has already started World War III and must be stopped.
“I believe that Putin has already started it [WW3],” he told the BBC.
“The question is how much territory he will be able to seize and how to stop him… Russia wants to impose on the world a different way of life and change the lives people have chosen for themselves.”
The comments come amid fraught ongoing trilateral discussions to secure a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
As the war approaches its four-year anniversary, Russia insists Ukraine surrender key territory while Zelensky is reluctant to any agreement that does not contain robust security guarantees.
Maira Butt22 February 2026 22:10NewerOlder