Ukraine war 'will have no winner,' UN says on 100th day of fight
Published: 04:06 PM,Jun 03,2022 | EDITED : 08:06 PM,Jun 03,2022
A view of the city of Mariupol amid the ongoing Russian military action in Ukraine. - AFP
KYIV: The United Nations said on Friday there would be no victor from Russia's invasion of Ukraine as the conflict entered its 100th day and Moscow's forces pressed deeper into the eastern Donbas region.
'This war has and will have no winner. Rather, we have witnessed for 100 days what is lost: lives, homes, jobs and prospects,' Amin Awad, Assistant Secretary-General and United Nations Crisis Coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement.
The milestone came as Kyiv announced Moscow was now in control of a fifth of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea and parts of Donbas seized in 2014.
'This war has taken an unacceptable toll on people and engulfed virtually all aspects of civilian life,' Awad said.
'In just over three months, nearly 14 million Ukrainians have been forced to flee their homes, the majority women and children,' the statement said.
The UN said the group was working to limit the war's 'devastating impact on food security by seeking to unblock critical grain and commodity trade.'
Cereal prices have surged because of a slump in exports from Ukraine, sharpening the impact of conflict and climate change and sparking fears of social unrest.
'We need peace. The war must end now,' the UN's statement read.
ZELENSKY VOWS VICTORY
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine will emerge victor in the war started by Russia.
Moscow assessed that 'certain results have been achieved,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, pointing to the 'liberation' of some areas from what he called the 'pro-Nazi armed forces of Ukraine'.
But Zelensky said Russia will not prevail appearing in a video accompanied by the same key political leaders also shown in a video posted on February 24 when they vowed to defend their country.
'Our team is much bigger. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are here. The most important -- the people, the people of our state are here. Defending Ukraine for 100 days already,' he said.
'Victory will be ours,' he declared in a show of defiance in the video with the presidential office building as a backdrop.
'LEVELLING EVERYTHING'
Putin's troops are now concentrating their forces in the Donbas, in the east, where some of the fiercest fighting is centred on the industrial hub city of Severodonetsk.
Fighting continues in Severodonetsk's city centre, the president's office said, adding that the invaders were 'shelling civilian infrastructure and Ukrainian military'.
Severodonetsk 'is the toughest area at the moment,' Zelensky said late on Thursday.
'For 100 days, they have been levelling everything', Lugansk regional governor Sergiy Gaiday said on Telegram.
Accusing the Russians of destroying hospitals, schools and roads, Gaiday said, however, that 'we are only getting stronger.
'Hatred of the enemy and faith in our victory make us unbreakable.'
Ukrainian troops were still holding an industrial zone, Gaiday said, a situation reminiscent of Mariupol, where a steelworks was the south-eastern port city's last holdout until Ukrainian troops finally surrendered in late May.
The situation in Lysychansk -- Severodonetsk's twin city, which sits just across a river -- also looked increasingly dire.
About 60 per cent of infrastructure and housing had been destroyed, while Internet, mobile network and gas services had been knocked out, said the city's mayor Oleksandr Zaika.
'GETTING WORSE'
'The shelling is getting stronger every day,' he said.
In the city of Sloviansk, about 80 kilometres from Severodonetsk, the mayor has urged residents to evacuate as bombing intensified and water and electricity are cut off.
Student Goulnara Evgaripova, 18 recounted heavy bombardments as she boarded a minibus to leave the city.
'The situation is getting worse, the explosions are stronger and stronger and the bombs are falling more often,' she said. - AFP
'This war has and will have no winner. Rather, we have witnessed for 100 days what is lost: lives, homes, jobs and prospects,' Amin Awad, Assistant Secretary-General and United Nations Crisis Coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement.
The milestone came as Kyiv announced Moscow was now in control of a fifth of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea and parts of Donbas seized in 2014.
'This war has taken an unacceptable toll on people and engulfed virtually all aspects of civilian life,' Awad said.
'In just over three months, nearly 14 million Ukrainians have been forced to flee their homes, the majority women and children,' the statement said.
The UN said the group was working to limit the war's 'devastating impact on food security by seeking to unblock critical grain and commodity trade.'
Cereal prices have surged because of a slump in exports from Ukraine, sharpening the impact of conflict and climate change and sparking fears of social unrest.
'We need peace. The war must end now,' the UN's statement read.
ZELENSKY VOWS VICTORY
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine will emerge victor in the war started by Russia.
Moscow assessed that 'certain results have been achieved,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, pointing to the 'liberation' of some areas from what he called the 'pro-Nazi armed forces of Ukraine'.
But Zelensky said Russia will not prevail appearing in a video accompanied by the same key political leaders also shown in a video posted on February 24 when they vowed to defend their country.
'Our team is much bigger. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are here. The most important -- the people, the people of our state are here. Defending Ukraine for 100 days already,' he said.
'Victory will be ours,' he declared in a show of defiance in the video with the presidential office building as a backdrop.
'LEVELLING EVERYTHING'
Putin's troops are now concentrating their forces in the Donbas, in the east, where some of the fiercest fighting is centred on the industrial hub city of Severodonetsk.
Fighting continues in Severodonetsk's city centre, the president's office said, adding that the invaders were 'shelling civilian infrastructure and Ukrainian military'.
Severodonetsk 'is the toughest area at the moment,' Zelensky said late on Thursday.
'For 100 days, they have been levelling everything', Lugansk regional governor Sergiy Gaiday said on Telegram.
Accusing the Russians of destroying hospitals, schools and roads, Gaiday said, however, that 'we are only getting stronger.
'Hatred of the enemy and faith in our victory make us unbreakable.'
Ukrainian troops were still holding an industrial zone, Gaiday said, a situation reminiscent of Mariupol, where a steelworks was the south-eastern port city's last holdout until Ukrainian troops finally surrendered in late May.
The situation in Lysychansk -- Severodonetsk's twin city, which sits just across a river -- also looked increasingly dire.
About 60 per cent of infrastructure and housing had been destroyed, while Internet, mobile network and gas services had been knocked out, said the city's mayor Oleksandr Zaika.
'GETTING WORSE'
'The shelling is getting stronger every day,' he said.
In the city of Sloviansk, about 80 kilometres from Severodonetsk, the mayor has urged residents to evacuate as bombing intensified and water and electricity are cut off.
Student Goulnara Evgaripova, 18 recounted heavy bombardments as she boarded a minibus to leave the city.
'The situation is getting worse, the explosions are stronger and stronger and the bombs are falling more often,' she said. - AFP