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Russia refused Easter truce offer, says Zelensky as he seeks $7 bn monthly aid
Ukraine war: Russia has stepped up offensive in the eastern part of the country and Mariupol.
Nearly two months into the Ukraine war, the war-hit nation has suffered a damage of around $ 60 billion, the World Bank has said. "Of course the war is still ongoing, so those costs are rising," World Bank president David Malpass said on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Kremlin has refused a proposal for an Easter truce, Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky underlined in his nightly address. but stressed he remains hopeful for peace. The Orthodox Christian Easter period starts late on Saturday into Sunday morning.
Here are ten updates on the Ukraine war:
1. To keep the economy afloat amid the losses, Zelensky has said that the war-torn nation needs USD 7 billion in aid a month. “The Russian military is aimed at destroying all objects in Ukraine that can serve as an economic base for life. That includes railroad stations, food warehouses, oil, refineries," he told leaders of the World Bank and IMF via video link, news agency AFP reported.
2. US president Joe Biden on Thursday announced an additional $ 1.3 billion in aid, new weapons and economic assistance to help Ukraine. This includes $ 800 million in military assistance. Thanking the US president, the Ukrainian president tweeted: "I’m grateful to @POTUS & the US people for the leadership in supporting the people of Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggression. This help is needed today more than ever! It saves the lives of our defenders of democracy and freedom and brings us closer to restoring peace in, (sic)"
3. “Putin is banking on us losing interest,” Biden tweeted. The Russian president is betting that “Western unity will crack ... and once again we’re going to prove him wrong,” he added.
4. Vladimir Putin on Thursday claimed victory in Mariupol - the key port town in Ukraine that has been under siege for about eight weeks now. At a time when over 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers were still holed up at a steel plant, according to a report by news agency AP, he ordered his troops not to storm the stronghold but to seal it off “so that not even a fly comes through.”
5. The stories of horror emerging from Mariupol have sent shockwaves across the world. About 9,000 bodies of civilians who died in the city have been taken to the breakaway state of Donetsk and buried there in mass graves, Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko has claimed.
6. "War is, first and foremost, a human tragedy," the World Bank's David Malpass said on Thursday. "The World Bank Group has completed an early assessment of the physical damage. It puts the cost in terms of buildings and infrastructure, the narrow cost, at roughly $60 billion and does not include the growing economic costs to Ukraine’s economy. Of course, the war is still ongoing, so those costs are rising," he added in an address that was attended by Zelensky.
7. The steel plant of Azovstal in Mariupol is where hundreds of civilians are still trapped, the Ukraine's foreign ministry said on Thursday. "Ukrainian army keeps fighting in the besieged #Mariupol, ruined by heavy 🇷🇺 bombardment. The situation on Azovstal is desperate. Hundreds of civilians, children, injured Ukrainian defenders are trapped in plantʼs shelters. They have almost no food, water, or essential medicine. (sic)," the foreign ministry wrote.
8. According to Kyiv, more than 21,000 Russian troops have died so far in about eight weeks of the war.
9. The United Nations says more than five million have fled their homes in search of safety.
10. The Kremlin has been relentless despite global sanctions. In a counter move to the punitive measures, Russia's foreign ministry has announced that it has barred U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and 27 other prominent Americans from entering the country.
(With inputs from AP, Reuters, AFP)
