- Battle for the city of Sievierodonetsk in progress- Zelenskiy
- Ukraine is grateful to the United Kingdom for its new pledge of arms, as Moscow warns the West
- The United States says credible reports that Russia is “stealing” grain from Ukraine
- The Russian ambassador leaves the UN meeting amid comments on the food crisis
Kyiv, June 7 (Reuters) – Street clashes between Ukrainian and Russian troops sparked a battle for the industrial city of Sievierodonetsk as Moscow forces push to conquer Ukraine’s eastern Donbas, seeking a decisive victory over 100 days after the invasion.
It was not clear which side had the advantage, with “the situation changing from hour to hour,” Oleksandr Stryuk, head of administration in Sievierodonetsk, told television.
The city has become the main target of the Russian offensive in the Donbas, which includes Luhansk and Donetsk provinces, while the Kremlin invasion continues in a war of attrition that has seen cities devastated by artillery bombardment. .
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“In the city, fierce street fights continue,” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Monday in his nightly video. “The Russian army is trying to deploy additional forces to Donbas.”
The governor of the province, Serhiy Gaidai, said on Monday that the situation had worsened after Ukrainian defenders pushed back the Russians over the weekend as they seemed close to victory.
Two civilians were killed Monday in Russian bombings in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and Russian forces had fired on more than 20 communities, according to the Ukrainian military.
Reuters was unable to independently verify battlefield reports. Russia denies targeting civilians in the conflict.
“We are offering people the opportunity to evacuate,” Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko told television.
“We have had more than 100 people evacuated from Sloviansk since last week. There are about 24,000 residents left. Now people understand, albeit late, that it is time to leave.”
After being expelled from Kyiv and Kharkiv in the early stages of the war, Russia says it has a mission to “liberate” the Donbas, partly detained by separatists since 2014, and is engaged in a “special military operation.” to disarm and “deactivate.” “your neighbor.
Ukraine and its allies call this an unfounded pretext for a war that has killed thousands, crushed cities and forced millions to flee abroad.
“EXACTLY THE WEAPONS WE NEED”
Zelenskiy thanked Britain for supplying multi-launch rocket systems that can hit targets up to 80 km (50 miles) away, providing the most accurate and long-range firepower needed to reach artillery batteries. Russian key to Moscow’s battle plans
“I am grateful to Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his full understanding of our demands and his readiness to provide Ukraine with exactly the weapons it needs to protect the lives of our people,” he said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would respond to Western deliveries of long-range weapons by pushing Ukrainian forces further back from the Russian border.
On Sunday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia would attack new targets if the West supplied longer-range missiles. On the same day, Russian missiles struck Kyiv for the first time in more than a month.
Russian forces were also advancing on Sloviansk, which is about 85 km (53 miles) west of Sievierodonetsk, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said.
‘RUSSIA PILFERING GRAIN’
Amid the worsening global food crisis, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there were “credible reports” that Russia was “rolling” grain exports to Ukraine to sell them with benefits.
Blinken said the alleged theft was part of larger Russian actions during his war in Ukraine that have affected Ukraine’s ability to export its wheat crop.
Prices for cereals, cooking oils, fuel and fertilizers have skyrocketed since the February 24 invasion.
Russia and Ukraine account for almost a third of the world’s wheat supply, while Russia is also an exporter of fertilizers and Ukraine is an exporter of corn and sunflower oil.
Russia’s ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia came out of a UN Security Council meeting on Monday when European Council President Charles Michel accused Moscow of fueling a food crisis.
Nebenzia told Reuters: “I couldn’t stay” because of “the lies that Charles Michel came here to distribute.”
Western countries have also imposed sweeping sanctions and unprecedented severity on Russia for its invasion.
On Monday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it had imposed personal sanctions on 61 U.S. officials, including Treasury and Energy Secretaries and top defense and media executives.
The move, he said, was in retaliation for “constantly expanding US sanctions.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre did not comment when asked about the measure during a briefing.
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Report by Natalia Zinets, Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Pavel Polityuk, Lidia Kelly and Ronald Popeski; written by Costas Pitas; edited by Cynthia Osterman
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