“This terrible attack shows once again the depths of cruelty and barbarism to which the Russian leader is willing to fall,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson commented from the G7, adding that this type of aggression “only strengthens the determination” of Westerners. to help Ukraine.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, the “highly frequented” shopping center of Kremenchuk was attacked by missiles fired by Tu-22 long-range bombers from Russia’s Kursk region.
There are “ten dead and more than 40 people were injured. This is the current situation in Kremenchuk because of the missile bombardment,” said Dmytro Lunin, who heads the Poltava regional government, where this city that had 220,000 inhabitants before the war is located.
The attack was described on Monday as “totally execrable” by the UN spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric.
“The world is horrified” by the Russian attack on a shopping center in Ukraine, said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
– Attacks in Kharkov –
On the other hand, new Russian bombardments against Kharkov, in northeastern Ukraine, left four dead and 19 wounded on Monday, including four children, according to local governor Oleg Sinegubov.
“The enemy deliberately terrorizes the civilian population,” he wrote on Telegram.
From Germany, the G7 leaders pledged on Monday to support Ukraine “as long as necessary” and promised more sanctions against Russia.
The G7 will continue to “provide financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support” to Ukraine “for as long as necessary,” according to a joint statement released at the summit held at the Elmau castle in Bavaria.
Speaking by videoconference at the meeting, Ukrainian President Volodomir Zelensky urged “doing everything” possible to end the war before the end of the year and avoid “the harshness of the Ukrainian winter” that makes fighting more difficult.
Zelenski, who will also participate in the NATO summit in Madrid on Tuesday, also called on the leaders of the seven richest democratic powers on the planet (the United States, Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, Japan and Canada) “to intensify the sanctions” against Russia.
– Help Ukraine –
The G7 also wants to “coordinate to use customs tariffs on Russian products to help Ukraine,” starting with higher tariffs, their leaders said.
“We will continue to increase the pressure on Putin. This war must end,” German Prime Minister Olaf Scholz tweeted.
G7 leaders also expressed “deep concern” following the announcement that Russia could transfer nuclear-capable missiles to Belarus.
At the forefront of supporting Ukraine, the United States is considering supplying Ukraine with a sophisticated surface-to-air missile system, a source said Monday, calling the initiative a “priority” for President Joe Biden.
– NATO strengthens –
The G7 summit will be followed by a NATO meeting in Madrid, which will focus on the situation in Ukraine.
This Monday, the Atlantic Alliance announced that it will increase its troops in a high readiness situation to “more than 300,000 combatants” (compared to the current 40,000) and that it will send more heavy weapons to its eastern flank.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that these measures “constitute the biggest review of our collective defense and presence since the Cold War.”
On the other hand, as the war drags on, its impact on other countries has intensified, with rising food and energy prices driving global inflation and fueling recession fears.
“We urgently call on Russia to cease, without any conditions, its attacks on agriculture and transport infrastructure, and to allow the free transit of agricultural shipments from Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea,” the G7 leaders said in a statement. the joint statement.
With millions of tons of grain blocked in Ukrainian ports, concern is growing that African nations highly dependent on Ukraine’s exports could face famine.
Argentina, Indonesia, India, Senegal and South Africa were invited to join the G7 summit from Monday.
On his side, Putin is going to make his first trip abroad since the beginning of the offensive against Ukraine, to Tajikistan (on Tuesday) and Turkmenistan (on Wednesday) to attend a summit of the Caspian Sea countries.
