Kyiv Deputy Mayor Volodymyr Bondarenko asked for donations of 200,000 gas masks to protect the local population, in a letter to the UFF (Ukrainian Freedom Fund), a non-profit organization working to provide aid to Ukrainian troops. gun attacks. The document was obtained by the American television network CNN.

Due to the large-scale invasion of the territory of Ukraine by Russian troops, there is a threat of chemical weapons attacks on the Ukrainian population, and especially on the citizens of Kyiv. Volodymyr Bondarenko

“On behalf of the Kyiv Mayor, Vitali Klitschko, on behalf of the citizens of Kyiv and the Ukrainian community, we request humanitarian assistance to the humanitarian center in Kiev, primarily in the form of personal protective equipment (respirators that comply with the attached technical requirements).” , it adds.

According to CNN, the UFF has already provided thousands of bulletproof vests, helmets, vehicles and field first aid kits to the Ukrainian Regional Defense forces.

Ukraine’s Azov Battalion claimed last week that a Russian drone had dropped a “toxic substance” on civilians in Mariupol, a port city in the south of the country where heavy bombing has been experienced, and that victims came into contact with it after contact. presented respiratory failure and neurological problems.

“Three people have clear signs of chemical warfare poisoning, but without catastrophic consequences,” said battalion leader Andrei Biletsky on the Telegram messaging app.

In early April, UK Armed Forces Minister James Heappey warned that “all options are on the table” on how the West would react if Russia used chemical weapons in Ukraine.

“I find it helpful to keep some uncertainty. […] As to what exactly the answer would be, but let’s be clear, if they are used, President Putin should know that all possible options are on the table for how the West might respond.”

US President Joe Biden has also promised a “response” if Russia attacks Ukraine with chemical weapons. (Watch the video below)

Deadline for Ukraine’s surrender

The Russian Ministry of Defense has today issued a new ultimatum for the surrender of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol – the day when Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that his country has begun a new phase of “special operations” in Ukraine, as the occupying government said. war.

“The next phase of this operation is starting and I think now will be an important moment,” Lavrov told India Today. He said the goal is “total liberation” of Donbass, Ukraine’s separatist regions in Lugansk. and Donetsk. On March 29, the Russian government said that the first phase had been completed. Today, Russia said it had hit more than 1,200 “military targets” in Ukraine in the past few hours; It was around 300 yesterday.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said its armed forces will have “new methods of warfare”. According to him, the new methods will allow “the soldiers to better adapt to the conditions of modern armed conflict.” He stated that he aimed to “further develop” the Russian Army and Navy and “grant them advanced military equipment”.

The events of recent months clearly show how important it is for Russia to continue to develop its Armed Forces.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu

Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Defense said in Mariupol what would be the “disastrous situation that developed at the Azovstal metallurgical plant” and said that anyone who delivers the weapons will “guarantee the preservation of life”. Russia wants “any kind of hostility” to be stopped.

On Sunday, 17th, a Russian ultimatum had already been ignored by Ukrainians in the port city. Today’s deadline must be completed by 10:00 Brasília time. But so far, there has been no statement from the Russians or Ukrainians about the situation at the Azovstal plant.

The Mariupol Chamber said yesterday that the Russian invaders attacked the Azovstal plant with “heavy bombs”. “There are at least a thousand civilians in underground bunkers in metalworks. Most of them are women with children and the elderly.”

The Russian ministry said that information on the presence of civilians would not be accurate, but “if any of the civilian population is in Azovstal,” “all measures will be taken to release them”.