Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the battle for control of the city of Sheverodonetsk could determine the outcome of the clash with Russian forces in the east of the country.
“Based on the results of this day, the 105th day of Russia’s full-scale war, Sheverodonetsk remains at the center of the confrontation in Donbas. We are defending our positions, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy,” Zelensky told the Telegram.
“This is a very tough battle, very difficult. Probably one of the most difficult in this whole war. I am grateful to all those who are defending this side. The fate of Donbass is being judged there in many ways.”
The Ukrainian president also warned that millions of people were at risk of starvation due to Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea.
In a televised address, Zelensky said the world was on the brink of a “terrible food crisis”, with Ukraine unable to export large quantities of wheat, corn, oil and other products, which had a “stabilizing role in the world market”.
“This means that unfortunately there may be a shortage of products in dozens of countries around the world. Millions of people are at risk of starvation if the Russian blockade of the Black Sea continues,” he said.
Russia has occupied large parts of the Ukrainian coast for nearly 15 weeks, and its warships control the Black and Azov Seas, blocking exports of Ukrainian agricultural products and raising grain prices.
Ukraine and the West accuse Moscow of instrumentalizing food supplies.
Russia has blamed Ukraine for landmines and international sanctions against Moscow.
Blaming Russia for the blockade, Zelensky said that “while we are looking for ways to protect freedom, someone else is destroying it. Someone else is still blackmailing the world with hunger.”
Ukraine exported up to six million tonnes of grain a month before the Russian invasion on February 24, which Moscow described as a “special military operation.”
The volume of these exports has since dropped to about one million as Ukraine, which used to export most of its products by sea, has been forced to transport grain by train across its western border or through its small ports on the Danube. .
Source: Capital
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