Ukraine rejected on Monday (7) an announcement made by Russia for the opening of new humanitarian corridors in the country. Earlier, Moscow said it plans to clear the way for civilians to leave the country for Russia or Belarus.
According to Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, Irina Vereshchuk, the opening of routes to Russia or to the neighboring country allied with Moscow is an attempt to manipulate international opinion, especially French President Emmanuel Macron, who called the Russian president. , Vladimir Putin.
“[O corredor] is not an acceptable option,” Vereshchuk said. “I hope French President Emmanuel Macron understands that his name and sincere desire to help are actually being used and manipulated by the Russian Federation,” she said.
The plan for a ceasefire and the evacuation of civilians would theoretically take place at 10 am Moscow time (4 am GMT). Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said a total of six humanitarian corridors would be opened in Ukrainian cities to allow civilians to escape the war, including in the capital Kiev.
There is distrust, however, in relation to the efficiency of the operation. Two ceasefire agreements, in Mariupol and the nearby town of Volnovakha, have failed in the past two days, with both sides accusing each other of breaking the deal.
As Russia announces plans to evacuate civilians from Kiev, Russia is “accumulating resources” to attack the Ukrainian capital, Ukraine’s Armed Forces said in a statement on Monday. “Furthermore, the enemy continues the offensive operation against the country, focused on the outskirts of Kiev, Kharkiv, Chernigov, Sumi and Mikolaiv.”
In the south, Ukrainian military officials said Russia bombed the Tuzli region near Odessa, damaging “crucial infrastructure equipment” but no injuries.
The invasion of Odessa began to take shape this Sunday (6). Ukraine’s main Black Sea port, the city is a target for Putin’s forces to the east, and if taken over, Moscow will have established control over almost the entire Black Sea coast, closing off Ukrainian access to it.
According to the UK Ministry of Defence, Russian forces are likely targeting Ukrainian communication infrastructure to reduce access to reliable news sources.
“Ukrainian internet access will likely also be disrupted as a result of Russian attacks on infrastructure,” it said in a statement.
In Kharkov, to the east, Russian bombs hit a university and a residential building. Other areas hit were the city of Chernihiv to the north, Mikolaiv to the south and Kharkiv, the country’s second largest urban centre, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksi Arestovich.
In Chernihiv, the city was bombed in all its regions. Arestovich called the situation in Kiev’s suburbs such as Bucha, Hostomel and Irpin as “catastrophic”.
UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said on Sunday that the number of people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine has passed the 1.5 million mark, making it the fastest growing refugee crisis since World War II.
On Monday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced that the Chinese Red Cross will provide humanitarian aid to Ukraine and reiterated a call for negotiations to continue.
He also said that the country’s friendship with Russia is “solid” and that mutual cooperation brings “benefits and well-being for both peoples”.
