On Monday, Russian soldiers continued their advance throughout numerous Ukrainian districts. At the same time, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of the possibility of more severe attacks ahead of the 31st anniversary of Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union.

Over the weekend, artillery shells rained down on Nikopol, a city near Europe's largest nuclear reactor in Zaporizhia, while missiles fell near the Black Sea port of Odesa.

Before Wednesday, Ukraine's Independence Day, and the six-month anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Zelensky has urged vigilance, stating that Moscow could do "something particularly ugly."

Zelensky stated that he had discussed "all the threats" with French President Emmanuel Macron and that messages had been conveyed to other world leaders, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"All of Ukraine's partners have been informed about what the terrorist state can prepare for this week," Zelensky stated in his nightly video address.
In addition, he stated that if Russia carried out its plans to prosecute captured Ukrainian defenders in Mariupol, it would have violated international law and scuttled any possibility of discussions.

"If this despicable show trial were to go ahead... this would be the line beyond which negotiations are no longer possible," he continued in this despicable show trial was to continue. "There will be no further dialogue. Our government has spoken it all."

In a Sunday piece, the Financial Times quoted Gennady Gatilov, the Russian ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, saying that Erdogan had attempted to foster discussion.

However, he refuted rumors of a meeting between Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating there "was not any practical platform for having this meeting."

The daughter of Alexander Dugin, an ultranationalist Russian thinker who supports Russia's annexation of Ukraine, was killed in a suspected car bomb attack near Moscow, according to Russian authorities.

While authorities stated that they were considering "all versions" in determining who was responsible, the Russian Foreign Ministry theorized that there might be a connection to Ukraine, which a Zelenskiy aide refuted.

Mykhailo Podolyak stated on Ukrainian television, "Ukraine, of course, had nothing to do with this because we are not a criminal state, like the Russian Federation, and moreover we are not a terrorist state,"

Russia announced on Sunday that its Kalibr missiles had destroyed an ammunition depot containing missiles for U.S.-made HIMARS rockets in Ukraine's southeastern Odesa region, which is home to ports vital to a United Nations-brokered plan to help Ukrainian agricultural exports reach global markets once again.

Kyiv reported that a grain storage facility had been struck.