Russia bombs Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city, and besieges the port of Mariupol

Russia on Tuesday intensified the offensive in Ukraine with the sending a huge military convoy to Kiev, a heavy bombardment against the country’s second city Kharkiv, and a siege against the port of Mariúpol, after a first cycle of unsuccessful negotiations and despite the multiplication of sanctions against Moscow. In the sixth day since Russia launched the invasion against its neighbor, the UN estimates that more than 660,000 people have fled Ukraine. The situation “looks set to become the largest refugee crisis in Europe this century,” said the spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).

This Tuesday, Moscow troops bombarded the center of Kharkiva city of 1.4 million people not far from the border with Russia.

Regional Governor Oleg Sinegubov reported that the shells are hitting the local government headquarters and also accused the Russian army of using “heavy weapons against the civilian population.”

Russian forces “regrouped” with armored vehicles, missiles and artillery to surround and capture Kiev, Kharkiv, Odessa, Kherson and Mariupoldenounced the presidency of Ukraine.

In Mariupol, the attacks left this important port located on the Sea of ​​Azov without electricity, reported the governor of the region, who indicated that the neighboring town of Volnovaja, where 20,000 inhabitants live, was almost “destroyed”.

These two cities are between the territory controlled by pro-Russian separatist rebels in the east and the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014, and Russian troops are trying to unite these two territories.

For his part, the commander of the separatist forces of the pro-Russian territory of Donetsk, Eduard Basurin, indicated that Mariúpol “will be completely surrounded” this Tuesday, and that his troops will allow civilians to leave through “two humanitarian corridors” open until on Wednesday.

The satellite images of the American company Maxar captured during the night a column of more than 60 kilometers of Russian vehicles and artillery advancing in the direction of the capital Kiev.

The advance guard of this convoy was already near the Antonov airport, about 25 kilometers from Kiev.

Ukrainian militias erected makeshift barricades in the capital and programmed electronic road signs to warn Russians that they will be “welcomed with bullets.” However, some of the militiamen fled along with the massive exodus of civilians.

the ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky He said Tuesday that the defense of Kiev is the “priority” and described the bombing in Kharkiv as a “war crime”.

On the southern front, the Russian army advanced to the gates of Kherson and began to install checkpoints at the entrance, denounced Igor Kolikhayev, mayor of the city, who tried to encourage the population and called for “calm” and not “provoke” the enemy.

“This is not a battle, it is a war. And the war is won with reasonable acts and with cold blood”, insisted the mayor.

The balance of the conflict, meanwhile, is uncertain and the UN reported 102 deaths among civilians and 304 wounded, but recognizes that the balance may be higher.

Ukraine reported that 352 civilians have died and 2,040 were wounded and claims that thousands of Russian soldiers were killed.

The Russian forces have not published any balance of what they describe as a “special military operation”, but they acknowledged that they suffered casualties.

Russia’s economic “destruction”

Before the advance of the Russians, Zelenskyurged the international community on Tuesday to ban Russia from “all ports” and “airports in the world”, a call picked up by the Danish shipping giant Maersk that announced the suspension of trips to Russian ports.

Zelenskywho will speak this Tuesday before the European Parliament after having requested the day before that his country enter the European Union (EU) through a “special procedure” affirmed that he seeks an “economic destruction” of Russia, at a time when the sanctions adopted by the United States, Europe and allied countries have a historical magnitude.

The punitive measures include a closure of airspace to Russian planes throughout the EU, an exclusion from a major international financial transfer system, and above all sanctions against the Russian president and his circle, including like-minded businessmen.

In this onslaught, Switzerland broke its traditional neutrality and announced that it joined the measures adopted by Europe and the United States.

“We are willing to intensify it and maintain it as long as necessary,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, visiting Poland, said on Tuesday.

The pressure is on all fronts. The International Olympic Committee recommended the exclusion of Russia from all competitions. Among other measures, Russia It was left out of the World Cup and the rugby federation, and this Tuesday it lost the venue for the World Cup in volleyball.

In addition, the audiovisual giants Disney and Sony Pictures announced the suspension of the release of their films in Russia due to the invasion.

The first negotiations between the two sides, held the day before in Belarusdid not culminate in any type of ceasefire and the delegations returned to their capitals to hold consultations and there is no date for the next meeting.

This Tuesday, the President of Ukraine denounced an “obvious” synchronization between the attacks and the negotiation process.

For his part, the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, indicated that Putin was informed of the talks but that it is too early to “evaluate” the result of the dialogue.

Boycott at the UN

Russia affirmed that it will continue its offensive in Ukraine until it achieves its objectivesDefense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced.

The minister stated that his country wants a “demilitarization” and “denazification” of Ukraine, as well as to protect Russia from the “military threat created by Western countries.”

the war in Ukraine He was the protagonist of an extraordinary emergency session of the UN General Assembly on Monday night in which numerous countries demanded an end to the “foolish” Russian invasion.

“Enough already! The fighting must stop.” Secretary General Antonio Guterres launched at the opening of the meeting.

On the sidelines of the UN meeting, the United States announced the expulsion of 12 “intelligence agents” from the Moscow diplomatic mission for carrying out “espionage activities.”

On Tuesday at the UN headquarters in Geneva, numerous delegations, including Ukraine and Western countries, boycotted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s online speech at a Disarmament conference and at the Human Rights Council session, leaving the room almost empty. empty.

________________________________