Volodymyr Zelensky addressed MPs in Parliament via video link today in a historic speech.
He said: ‘I would like to tell you about the 13 days of war, the war that we didn’t start and we didn’t want. However we have to conduct this war, we do not want to lose what we have, what is ours, our country Ukraine.’
‘Please increase the pressure of sanctions against [Russia] and please recognise this country as a terrorist country.
‘Please make sure sure that our Ukrainian skies are safe.’
Buses packed with people fleeing the Russian invasion in Ukraine left two embattled cities today along safe corridors as the war entered its 13th day.
United Nations officials said the exodus of refugees from the country had reached two million amid the biggest ground war in Europe since the Second World War.
The Russian onslaught has trapped people inside besieged cities that are low on food and water, with previous attempts to lead civilians to safety having failed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for the expansion of humanitarian corridors for civilians.
He said a child died of dehydration in Mariupol in what was a desperate situation in the city – and pleaded again with Western countries to provide air support.
With the invasion now well into its second week, Russian troops have made significant advances in southern Ukraine but stalled in some other regions.
Ukrainian soldiers and volunteers have fortified the capital of Kyiv with hundreds of checkpoints and barricades designed to thwart a takeover.
A steady rain of shells and rockets fell on other major population centres, including the Kyiv suburb of Bucha, where the mayor reported heavy artillery fire.
This liveblog has now closed.
source : daily mail
