Russia-Ukraine live news: Kyiv rules out concession to Moscow

Kyiv rules out ceasefire or territorial concessions as Moscow hits military targets in Ukraine’s east and south.

Here are the updates on Monday, May 23:

18 mins ago (21:10 GMT)

Ukraine parliament bans Russian war symbols

Ukraine’s parliament has banned the symbols “Z” and “V”, used by Russia’s military to promote its war in the country but agreed to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s call to allow their use for educational or historic purposes.

Yaroslav Zheleznyak, an opposition member, announced the decision on the Telegram messaging app, saying 313 deputies had voted in favour in the 423-member Verkhovna Rada assembly.

Zelenskiy had vetoed an earlier version of the bill and called for the two symbols to be allowed in displays in museums, libraries, scientific works, re-enactments, textbooks and similar instances.

Neither of the two letters exists in the Russian alphabet. They have been widely used, particularly on Russian military vehicles and equipment, to promote the aims of the conflict.

26 mins ago (21:01 GMT)

Ukraine rejects concessions as Russians attack in east and south

Ukraine rules out a ceasefire or any territorial concessions to Moscow as Russia stepped up its attack in the eastern and southern parts of the country, pounding the Donbas and Mykolaiv regions with air strikes and artillery fire.

Kyiv’s stance has become increasingly uncompromising in recent weeks as Russia experienced military setbacks while Ukrainian officials grew worried they might be pressured to sacrifice land for a peace deal.

“The war must end with the complete restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” Andriy Yermak, Ukraine’s presidential chief of staff said in a Twitter post.

Hello and welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the war in Ukraine.

Read all the updates from Saturday, May 22 here.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies