'Only Way To Stop The War': Ukraine President Zelensky Seeks Direct Talks With Putin

"If you do not have the power to close the skies, then give me planes!" Zelensky told a press conference.

New Delhi: Amid an intensifying military offensive by Russia in the former Soviet state, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday called for direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as quoted by news agency AFP.

"If you do not have the power to close the skies, then give me planes!" Zelensky told a press conference. "If we are no more then, God forbid, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia will be next," he said, adding: "Believe me."

Zelensky called for the direct talks with Putin, saying it was "the only way to stop this war."

"We are not attacking Russia and we do not plan to attack it. What do you want from us? Leave our land," he said, addressing Putin.

"Sit down with me. Just not 30 metres away like with (French President Emmanuel Macron)," the Ukrainian leader said, referring to Putin receiving world leaders at a now famous enormously long table.

Meanwhile, In Chernihiv, Russian aircraft attacked two schools in Stara Podusivka area and private homes. According to preliminary information, 9 people are dead and 4 are injured, said Ukrainian governor as quoted by news agency AFP.

Russian Air Strike Hits Two Schools In Ukraine's Chernihiv, 22 Dead

An air strike by Russia hit two schools and private houses in Ukraine's Chernihiv region on Thursday, killing 22 people and injuring dozens, Reuters reported. 

The news was confirmed by Chernihiv Governor Viacheslav Chaus in an online post. He said Russian aircraft attacked two schools in the Staraya Podusivka area (of Chernihiv) and private homes.

"Rescue work is ongoing. According to the state emergency services, at least 22 bodies have been recovered from rubble," Reuters quoted Chaus as saying.

The development comes even as the second round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine began at a location on the Belarus-Poland border.

Russia has shelled several key sites in Ukrainian capital Kyiv and in the country's second-largest city, Kharkiv, killing more than 20 people and wounding dozens of others, Ukrainian officials said. Among the sites hit recently were Kyiv's main TV tower and Holocaust memorial.

On Wednesday, a missile attack also destroyed the building of the regional police department in Kharkiv and the university building.

Ukrainian emergency services have said that more than 2,000 Ukrainian civilians have died since the Russian invasion began on February 24. It also said that hundreds of structures, including transport facilities, hospitals, kindergartens and homes were destroyed in Russian shelling and missile strikes.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said "the Russian death toll has reached about 9,000". 

The Russian Defence Ministry, however, confirmed casualties in Ukraine for the first time on Wednesday. A spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry says 498 Russian troops have been killed in Ukraine and 1,597 wounded, AP reported.

Major General Igor Konashenkov also said more than 2,870 Ukrainian troops have been killed and about 3,700 wounded, while 572 others have been captured.