Following its invasion of Ukraine, Russia may use chemical weapons, according to NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

He made the chilling statement after Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia will have to “raze Kyiv to the ground” before they can wrest control of the city from his people.

During a news conference on Saturday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also stated that approximately 1,300 of his troops had died in the conflict.

On the 18th day of the Russian invasion, Putin’s men are only 25 kilometres from the capital city centre.

Ukraine’s intelligence service reported today that Russia opened fire on a convoy of civilian evacuees from the village of Peremoha in the Kyiv region, killing seven people, including a child.

Kyiv has accused Russian forces of kidnapping Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov as they enter a “new stage of terror.”

Anton Heraschenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior ministry, claimed that 10 soldiers stormed Melitopol’s crisis centre on Thursday, March 10, before placing a bag over Mr Federov’s head.

Ukraine officials have now released CCTV footage purportedly showing the moment their colleague was kidnapped by Putin’s men.