- The head of the UN refugee agency says Ukraine’s war-stoked food crisis is set to drive record displacement to more “staggering” levels.
- US President Joe Biden says Washington will provide an additional $1 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.
- The Russian military claims it destroyed a depot in the western region of Lviv where ammunition for NATO-supplied weapons was stored.
- German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi are expected to visit Kyiv on Thursday.
- Ukrainian fighters inside the Severodonetsk Azot chemical plant have ignored a Russian ultimatum to surrender.
- The Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukrainian forces of disrupting efforts to allow civilians to escape from the chemical plant on Wednesday.
Here are the latest updates:
Food crisis will drive global displacement to ‘staggering’ level: UN refugee chief
A food security crisis stoked by Ukraine’s war will push more people to flee their homes in poorer countries, further raising record levels of global displacement, says the head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR). ).
A report by the UN body shows that some 89.3 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide as a result of persecution, conflict, abuse and violence by the end of 2021. Since then, millions more have have fled Ukraine or have been displaced within its borders, with price increases linked to the grain export blockade causing further displacement elsewhere.
“If there is a food crisis on top of everything that I have described (war, human rights, climate), it will simply accelerate the trends that I have described in this report,” Filippo Grandi told reporters Monday during an embargoed news conference. describing the figures as “staggering”.
Grandi also criticized what he called a “monopoly” of resources given to Ukraine, which should not “make us forget other crises,” he said, citing a two-year conflict in Ethiopia and a drought in the Horn of Africa.
Zelenskyy in ‘ongoing’ talks with UK’s Johnson
Zelenskyy is in “constant contact” with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Ukraine’s president said, after the two shared a phone call on Wednesday.
“I coordinated positions on the eve of important international events. He discussed the situation on the battlefield, Ukraine’s defense needs and threats to food security,” Zelenskyy said in a tweet.
Johnson said the G7 and NATO summits later this month were an opportunity to demonstrate the West’s unity and determination to support Ukraine long-term, according to a statement from his office.
The continued determination of the Ukrainian forces to win is evident to the whole world, and Ukraine can count on the full and unwavering support of the UK until its eventual victory, Johnson said.
in constant contact with @BorisJohnson. Coordinated positions on the eve of important international events. He discussed the situation on the battlefield, Ukraine’s defense needs and threats to food security.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) June 15, 2022
Albanian and Montenegrin prime ministers visit Kyiv
The prime ministers of Albania and Montenegro visited Kyiv on Wednesday to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a show of solidarity with Ukraine.
North Macedonia’s Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski joined Albania’s Edi Rama and Montenegro’s Dritan Abazovic via video link. The leaders produced a declaration in support of Ukraine becoming a candidate state for membership in the European Union.
The three Western Balkan nations are officially candidates for EU membership, but progress on their ascension has stalled amid regional problems.
“Our states – Ukraine, the Republic of Albania, Montenegro and the Republic of North Macedonia – must become full members of the EU. And we agree that our countries are not competitors on this European path, they complement each other and strengthen each other’s capabilities,” Zelenskyy said.
No immediate need for additional help to Ukraine from Congress: White House
The White House does not believe it currently needs an additional Ukraine aid package from the US Congress after taking advantage of a recently passed $40 billion measure.
“I don’t think we’re there yet,” John Kirby, strategic communications coordinator for the National Security Council, told reporters Wednesday.
Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Says Overvalued Ruble: Tass
Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov says the ruble is overvalued and the industry would be more comfortable if it fell to 70-80 against the US dollar from the current 57, the state-run Tass news agency said.
Belousov, speaking to the agency in an interview, said that annual Russian inflation by the end of the year would be around 15 percent. As of June 10, it was 16.69 percent.
NATO weapons depot destroyed near Polish border: Russia
The Russian military said it used long-range missiles to destroy a depot in Ukraine’s western Lviv region where ammunition for NATO-supplied weapons was stored.
Near the border with NATO member Poland, Russian forces used high-precision Kalibr missiles to destroy the depot near the town of Zolochiv, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.
Konashenkov said shells for M777 howitzers, a type supplied by the United States, were stored there. He said that four shells were destroyed elsewhere and that Russian airstrikes also destroyed Ukrainian “aircraft equipment” at a military airfield in the southern region of Mykolaiv.
Ukrainian officials did not immediately comment.
German, French and Italian leaders in Kyiv expected to show solidarity
The leaders of the three largest countries in the European Union, Germany, France and Italy, are expected to show their support for Ukraine on Thursday in kyiv.
The visit by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi took weeks to organize and the three are seeking to overcome criticism within Ukraine over their response to the war.
“We are at a point where we need to send clear political signals, we Europeans, to Ukraine and its people when it is heroically resisting,” Macron said, without elaborating.
The trip, which has not been announced for security reasons, comes a day before the European Commission makes a recommendation on Ukraine’s status as a candidate for the EU, something that larger European nations have been little about. enthusiasts.
Ukraine ignores Severodonetsk ultimatum to surrender
Ukraine has ignored a Russian ultimatum to hand over the eastern city of Severodonetsk, now largely in ruins after weeks of heavy bombardment.
Russia told Ukrainian forces holed up in a chemical plant there to lay down their arms. Ukraine says more than 500 civilians, including 40 children, remain with soldiers inside the Azot chemical factory.
Moscow said it had opened a humanitarian corridor from Azot to allow civilians to escape into Russian-controlled territory. He accused Ukrainian forces of disrupting that plan and using civilians as human shields, which Kyiv denied.
West must focus on Ukraine: Pentagon chief
The Russian invasion of Ukraine came at a “crucial” moment and the US and its allies cannot stop focusing on the three-month conflict, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
Austin was speaking at a meeting of dozens of defense ministers on the sidelines of a NATO ministerial meeting.
“We can’t afford to slack off and we can’t lose strength. The stakes are high,” Austin said at the start of the meeting in Brussels. “Ukraine is facing a crucial moment on the battlefield… Russia is using its long-range fires to try to overwhelm the Ukrainian positions.”
.@SecDef: I am personally grateful for the important security assistance that this [Ukraine Defense Contact Group] has provided so far, but we cannot afford to slacken and we cannot lose strength. The stakes are too high. pic.twitter.com/xlpSuLTrLO
— Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) June 15, 2022
You can read all the updates for June 15 here.
Reference-www.aljazeera.com