Russia pounds Ukraine, targets Western weapon supply routes

Complaining that the West is "stuffing Ukraine with weapons," Russia pounded railroad stations and other supply-line points across the country on Wednesday.

Heavy fighting also raged at the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol that represented the last pocket of Ukrainian resistance in the ruined southern port city, according to the mayor. But a Russian official denied Moscow's troops were storming the plant, as Ukrainian commanders claimed a day earlier.

The Russian military said on Wednesday it used sea- and air-launched missiles to destroy electric power facilities at five railway stations across Ukraine, while artillery and aircraft also struck troop strongholds and fuel and ammunition depots.

The flurry of attacks comes as Russia prepares to celebrate Victory Day on May 9, marking the Soviet Union's defeat of Nazi Germany. The world is watching for whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will use the occasion to declare a victory or expand what he calls a "special military operation".

A declaration of all-out war would allow Putin to introduce martial law and mobilise reservists to make up for significant troop losses.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the speculation as "nonsense".

As areas across Ukraine came under renewed attack, Belarus, which Russia used as a staging ground for its invasion, announced military exercises starting on Wednesday. A top Ukrainian official said the country will be ready to act if Belarus joins the fighting.

The attacks on rail infrastructure were meant to disrupt the delivery of Western weapons, Russian defence ministry spokesman Maj Gen Igor Konashenkov said. Defence minister Sergei Shoigu said the West is "stuffing Ukraine with weapons".

Western weaponry pouring into Ukraine helped its forces thwart Russia's initial drive to seize Kyiv and seems certain to play a central role in the growing battle for the Donbas, the eastern industrial region that Moscow now says is its main objective.

Germany considers to supply howitzers

Ukraine has urged the West to ramp up the supply of weapons ahead of that potentially decisive clash. Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, which had been slow at first to help arm Ukraine, said his government is considering supplying howitzers, in addition to Gepard anti-aircraft guns and other equipment it has agreed to send.

The governor of the eastern Donetsk region, which lies in the Donbas, said Russian attacks left 21 people dead on Tuesday, the highest number of known fatalities since April 8, when a missile attack on the railway station in Kramatorsk killed at least 59. 

On Tuesday, in one of the most crucial battles of the war, Ukrainian fighters said Russian forces began storming the bombed-out steel mill in Mariupol. But the Kremlin said that was not true.

"There is no assault. We see that there are cases of escalation due to the fact that the militants take up the firing positions. These attempts are being suppressed very quickly," Peskov said.

Over the weekend, more than 100 people - including women, the elderly and 17 children - were evacuated from the plant during a cease-fire in an operation overseen by the UN and the Red Cross.

Biden to confer with G7 leaders on sanctions

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he would speak with other leaders from the Group of Seven advanced economies this week about potential additional sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine.

"We're always open to additional sanctions," Biden told reporters, when asked about US plans. "I'll be speaking with the members of the G7 this week about what we're going to do or not do," Biden added.

Russia bans entry to Japan's PM, officials

Russia said on Wednesday it has banned entry to several dozen Japanese officials, including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, after Tokyo joined international sanctions against Moscow over its military campaign in Ukraine.