International organizations are struggling to evacuate all civilian refugees in the industrial district of Mariupol in southern Ukraine, one of the areas most devastated during the war with Russia.
The first convoy with about 100 people left the region over the weekend. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba admits the operation is “very fragile”. There are reports of bombings even during the period of operation of the humanitarian corridors.
But while some civilians are reunited with family members and celebrate having managed to get to safer areas of the country, others remain stranded in the city.
The mayor of Mariupol, Vadym Boichenko, said on Monday (2) that the process is very difficult and that the Russians are creating obstacles for the departure of civilians.
A Ukrainian military official also said that the Azovstal plant is under constant attack after the civilians have left – and that there are still people who have not been able to leave the complex, and are in poor condition, with nothing to eat.
Also on Monday, a missile attack hit the port city of Odessa in southwestern Ukraine.
According to authorities in the country, the attack hit a residential area of ​​the city and damaged a church.
Over the weekend, Ukraine received a surprise visit from the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Democrat Nancy Pelosi.
She met with Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelensky in Kiev, the country’s capital. And she said that the United States will stand by Ukraine until the end of the fight. That was the most recent visit by a high-ranking American official to the country.
As the war in Ukraine enters a new phase, the United States is trying to reinforce the idea of ​​union with Ukraine and the allies of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) with these official trips. On Thursday (5), the first lady, Jill Biden, travels to Romania and Slovakia to speak about the humanitarian crisis.
Despite the visits, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said US President Joe Biden would “love” to go to Ukraine, but there are no plans to do so at the moment.
This week, Congress also continues discussions on Biden’s proposal to send $33 billion to Ukraine, which includes military and humanitarian assistance. The release is in the hands of Congress, and there is some disagreement over what amount should be provided.
Source: CNN Brasil
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