Ukraine Conflict: Two new besieged cities are almost out of water and food

The local authorities of Chernihiv (to the north) and Kherson (to the south) have warned this Tuesday that both cities, of some 285,000 inhabitants, are running out of food and medicine.

“The shelling in Chernihiv is almost constant. Without electricity, water supply or communications, we are approaching a humanitarian crisis”, assured the head of the regional administration, Viacheslav Chaus.

Also in Kherson, Russian troops are blocking the entry of supplies. “Even so, Russia refuses to open humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians,” lamented a spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. He added that “the humanitarian situation is rapidly deteriorating. The city is critically short of food and medical supplies due to the siege. Newborns, who lack infant nutrition and hygiene products, and seriously ill patients constitute the population at special risk.

He affirms that “the Russian invaders retaliate against the residents of the city” and recalls that this Monday they opened fire on peaceful protesters in Liberty Square, injuring an elderly man.

The ministry adds that “about a hundred international students, mainly from African countries, are currently in Kherson.”

“Despite the efforts of the Government of Ukraine and international humanitarian organizations, the Russian Federation continues to refuse to create a humanitarian corridor for the evacuation of civilians and the delivery of food. The city is approaching a humanitarian catastrophe every day that passes,” the statement said.

The city, with nearly 300,000 inhabitants, is located next to the Dnieper River and on the shores of the Black Sea and is a strategic point in the Russian offensive that began on February 24, due to its proximity to Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.

Mariupol evacuated

According to Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk, the evacuation is now focused on Mariupol.

The city has been bombed for weeks and is without water, electricity, gas or heating, and with a shortage of supplies.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that the invasion is for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, “the gateway to Europe”.

Kidnapping and sanctions

The US Embassy in Kyiv has accused Russian troops of having “abducted” 2,389 minors from Donetsk and Lugansk and transferred them to Russia.

US President Joe Biden will visit Brussels this week, where he hopes to negotiate new sanctions on Russia with NATO partners and the European Union.