Russia, Ukraine training for the potential of a long war ahead

On the heels of the latest major attack in Ukraine, both sides of Russia’s invasion have begun training for the potential of the war to last months into the future. The attack, a missile strike that hit an apartment building in Dnipro, was among the deadliest attacks on Ukrainian civilians since before last summer.

About 1,700 people lived in the multistory building that was the target of Saturday’s missile strike. Monday, authorities reported the death toll had risen to 40 with 30 others missing. The regional administration added that at least 75 others were wounded.

“The explosion was very long, it seemed to us that it was very long. The child and I were screaming so hard that my throat hurt. Five minutes after the explosion, we did not even move,” Iryna Fedorchenko, who survived the attack, said Sunday. “I don’t know what the point is, there is not a single military facility here. This is a residential area. There are only houses here.”

When asked about the strike Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian military doesn’t target residential buildings. He suggested the Dnipro building was hit as a result of Ukrainian air defense actions. On Sunday, the Ukrainian military said it did not have the means to intercept the type of Russian missile that hit the apartment building.

Peskov’s comments came the same day Russian and Belarusian air forces began a joint exercise in Belarus. Russia has sent its warplanes to Belarus for the drills. The Belarusian Defense Ministry said the drills are set to run through Feb. 1.

Ukraine appeared to be aware of the training between Russia and Belarus, staging some of its own war drills near their border with Belarus last week. Sunday, the U.S. military’s new, expanded combat training of Ukrainian forces began in Germany. According to Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Mark Milley, the goal is to get a battalion of about 500 troops back on the battlefield to in the next five to eight weeks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.