INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian forces are now largely in control of the key eastern Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk amid fierce fighting, Kyiv said Wednesday, as
UN chief Antonio Guterres starkly warned the war's impact on the world was worsening.The strategic city has become the focus of Russia's
the epicenter of fighting in the Donbas," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, referring to the region in eastern Ukraine that
includes the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk."It is a very fierce battle, very difficult, probably one of the hardest in the course of this
war," Zelensky said in his evening address to the nation.Sergiy Gaiday, governor of Luhansk, which includes Severodonetsk, conceded that
Ukraine's forces might have to pull back as Russian troops were shelling the city "24 hours a day."Later in the day, he said on Telegram
on in the streets inside the city," he added.Russia's offensive is now targeting the Donbas, after its forces were pushed back from Kyiv and
other areas following the Feb
24 invasion.The cities of Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, which are separated by a river, were the last areas still under Ukrainian control in
Luhansk.Lysychansk remains fully under the control of the Ukrainian army but is under "powerful and chaotic" shelling, Gaiday said, accusing
Russian forces of deliberately targeting hospitals and humanitarian aid distribution centers."The destruction is enormous," he
added.'Systemic, severe, and speeding up'Guterres warned Wednesday that 1.6 billion people were likely to be affected as the consequences of
Russia's invasion of Ukraine worsened."The war's impact on food security, energy and finance is systemic, severe, and speeding up," the UN
secretary-general said.He added that "for people around the world, the war is threatening to unleash an unprecedented wave of hunger and
destitution, leaving social and economic chaos in its wake."As concerns mounted over grain trapped at Ukrainian ports, Russian Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was ready to ensure the safe passage of ships from Ukraine."We are ready to do this in cooperation with
our Turkish colleagues," Lavrov told reporters in Ankara amid warnings of shortages worldwide partly blamed on the Russian invasion.At the
request of the United Nations, Turkey has offered its services to escort maritime convoys from Ukrainian ports, despite the presence of
allow grain exports, citing the threat of Russian attacks on the city.Lavrov's Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu called Russian demands
for an end to sanctions to help grain onto the world market "legitimate.""If we need to open up the international market to Ukrainian grain,
we see the removal of obstacles standing in the way of Russia's exports as a legitimate demand," he said.Kyiv, which was not represented at
the Ankara talks, pushed back against claims that Western sanctions on Moscow had sent prices soaring."We have been actively communicating,
the president and myself, about the true cause of this crisis: it is Russian aggression, not sanctions," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro
which could worsen global food shortages.As he hosted Mediterranean ministers for talks on the global food crisis, Italian Foreign Minister
Luigi Di Maio warned "millions" could die unless Russia unblocked Ukraine's ports.But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected suggestions
that grain stuck in Ukrainian ports was fueling the problem."As far as we know, there is much less grain than the Ukrainians say
There is no need to exaggerate the importance of these grain reserves," he told reporters.The war's economic impact continued to
to the invasion.'Bombings every day'Severodonetsk appeared close to being captured just days ago but Ukrainian forces launched
counterattacks and managed to hold out, despite warnings they were outnumbered by superior forces.Lanny Davis, a U.S
lawyer for Ukrainian tycoon Dmytro Firtash, said 800 civilians had taken refuge in the bunkers inside his huge Azot chemical plant in the
city.The situation was also increasingly desperate in Lysychansk."Every day there are bombings and every day something burns
And there is nobody to help me," 70-year-old Yuriy Krasnikov told AFP."I tried to go to the city authorities, but nobody's there, everyone
has run away."Ivan Sosnin was among those residents who decided to stay despite the war."This is our home, that's all we know
We grew up here, where else should we go?" said the 19-year-old.
