- The battle for the city of Severodonetsk continues – Zelensky
- Ukraine thanks UK for new arms promises, as Moscow warns West
- The United States says there are credible reports that Russia is “stealing” Ukraine’s grain
- Russia’s ambassador is leaving the UN amid commenting on the food crisis
Kyiv, June 7 (Reuters) – Street fights between Ukrainian and Russian troops raged in the battle for the industrial city of Severodonetsk as Moscow forces demanded the conquest of Ukraine’s eastern Donbass, seeking a decisive victory more than 100 days after the invasion.
Which country had the upper hand is not clear, as “the situation is changing from hour to hour,” Alexander Struck, head of the Severodonetsk administration, said on television.
The city has become a major target of Russia’s offensive in Donbass – including the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk – as the Kremlin’s invasion plunges into a war of attrition that sees cities devastated by artillery fire.
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“Fierce street fighting continues in the city,” President Vladimir Zelensky said in a video address Monday night. “The Russian army is trying to deploy additional forces to Donbass.
Provincial Governor Sergei Gaidai said earlier Monday that the situation had worsened after Ukrainian defenders repulsed the Russians over the weekend as they looked close to victory.
Two civilians were killed in Russian shelling in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions on Monday, and Russian forces shelled more than 20 communities, according to the Ukrainian military.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports from the battlefield. Russia denies targeting civilians in the conflict.
“We offer people a chance to evacuate,” Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kirilenko said on television.
“We had more than 100 people evacuated from Slavyansk last week. About 24,000 people remain. Now people understand, although it’s too late, it’s time to leave.”
After being pushed out of Kyiv and Kharkiv in the early stages of the war, Russia says it is on a mission to “liberate” Donbass, partially held by separatists since 2014, and is participating in a “special military operation” to disarm and “denationalize” his neighbor.
Ukraine and its allies call it an unfounded pretext for a war that killed thousands, compared cities and forced millions to flee abroad.
‘EXACTLY OF THE WEAPONS I NEED’
Zelenski thanked Britain for supplying missile systems that could hit targets up to 80 km (50 miles) away, providing the more accurate long-range firepower needed to reach Russian artillery batteries, which is key to Moscow’s battle plans.
“I am grateful to Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his full understanding of our demands and his willingness 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 supplies of long-range weapons by withdrawing Ukrainian forces away from Russia’s border.
On Sunday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia would hit new targets if the West delivered longer-range missiles. On the same day, Russian missiles hit Kyiv for the first time in more than a month.
Russian forces are also advancing on Slavyansk, about 85km (53 miles) west of Severodonetsk, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said.
“RUSSIA STOLES GRAIN”
Amid a deteriorating global food crisis, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said there were “credible reports” that Russia was “stealing” Ukrainian grain exports to sell for profit.
Blinken said the alleged theft was part of Russia’s wider actions during the war in Ukraine, which affected Ukraine’s ability to export its wheat crop.
Prices for cereals, cooking oil, fuel and fertilizers have risen since the February 24 invasion.
Russia and Ukraine account for nearly a third of the world’s wheat supplies, while Russia is also an exporter of fertilizers and Ukraine is an exporter of corn and sunflower oil.
Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, left a meeting of the UN Security Council 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 spread.”
Western countries have also imposed sanctions of unprecedented proportions and severity on Russia’s invasion.
On Monday, Russia’s foreign ministry said it had imposed personal sanctions on 61 US officials, including the finance and energy minister and senior defense and media executives.
The move, he said, was revenge for “the continued expansion of US sanctions”.
White House spokeswoman Carin Jean-Pierre did not comment when asked about the move during a briefing.
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Report by Natalia Zinets, Alexander Kozhuhar, Pavel Polityuk, Lydia Kelly and Ronald Popeski; writing by Costas Pitas; edited by Cynthia Ostermann
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