Ukraine claims about 40 killed so far in attack

Kyiv, Feb 24 (AP) An adviser to Ukraine's president says about 40 people have been killed so far in the Russian attack on the country.

Oleksii Arestovich, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that several dozen people have been wounded.

He didn't specify whether the casualties included civilians.

Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian authorities will hand weapons to all those willing to defend the country.

The future of the Ukrainian people depends on every Ukrainian, he said, urging all those who can defend the country to come to the Interior Ministry's assembly facilities.

Ankara: Ukraine's ambassador to Turkey has called on the NATO member country to close its airspace and to shut down the straits at the entrance of the Black Sea to Russian ships.

We are calling for the airspace, Bosporus and Dardanelles straits to be closed, Ambassador Vasyl Bodnar told reporters on Thursday. We have conveyed our relevant demand to the Turkish side. At the same time, we want sanctions imposed on the Russian side.

A 1936 convention gives Turkey control over the straits connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, and allows it to limit the passage of warships during wartime or if Turkey is threatened.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan convened an emergency security meeting to discuss the Russian attack on Ukraine.

Turkey, which enjoys close relations with both Ukraine and Russia, had been pressing for a diplomatic solution to the tensions.

Kyiv: A Ukrainian presidential adviser says that Russian forces have launched an attack on Ukraine from the north, east and south.

The adviser, Mykhailo Podolyak, said the Ukrainian military is fighting hard.

Podolyak said Thursday that "our army is fighting back inflicting significant losses to the enemy. He said that there have been civilian casualties, but didn't give details.

He said that Ukraine now needs greater and very specific support from the world military-technical, financial as well as tough sanctions against Russia, he said.

Another adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia has targeted air bases and various other military infrastructure.

Oleksii Arestovich said the Russian strike hasn't achieved its goal to rout the country's military. He said that we suffered casualties, but they aren't significant, adding that the Russian strikes haven't eroded the combat capability of the Ukrainian military.

He said that the Russian troops moved up to 5 km (about 3 miles) deep into the Ukrainian territory in the Kharkiv and Chernihiv regions, and, possibly in other areas.