Concern after Russian missiles struck the Black Sea port on Monday as Biden accuses Putin of ‘revisionist history’ in his Victory Day speech
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has urged the international community to take immediate steps to end a Russian blockade of his country’s ports in order to allow wheat shipments and prevent a global food crisis.
The Black Sea export port of Odesa was struck by missiles on Monday. Zelenskiy said: “For the first time in decades there is no usual movement of the merchant fleet, no usual port functioning in Odesa. Probably this has never happened in Odesa since world war two.
The United States cited “anecdotal reports” that some Russian troops in Ukraine were not obeying orders. “Mid-grade officers at various levels, even up to the battalion level” were refusing to move forward in the Donbas offensive.
The UN human rights council is due to hold a special session on Thursday to address alleged Russian human rights violations during its war in Ukraine. More than 50 countries, including Britain, Germany, Turkey and the US, backed a request by Ukraine and demanded an extraordinary meeting of the UN’s top rights body.
A mine-sniffing dog credited with detecting more than 200 explosives since the start of the war in Ukraine has been given a medal. Patron, a two-and-a-half-year-old jack russell whose name means “ammo” in Ukrainian, was presented with the award by Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in Kyiv.
