The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said that the whole world suffered from Russian terror, referring to the attacks on Odesa and on the ports from where important volumes of food products were to be sent to countries in Africa and Asia. “Everyone should be interested in holding Russia accountable for its terror,” he said.

“During the day, maximum attention was paid to the elimination of the traces of shelling by Russian terrorists on the city of Odesa, on populated areas of the region, on Chornomorsk, on our ports. It was almost the largest attempt by Russia to inflict pain on Odesa during the entire period of the full-scale war. Thanks to air defense and our defenders of the sky, the consequences of the attack are smaller than they could have been,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an address to his compatriots on Wednesday evening, News.ro reports.

He added that with each such attack he calls on his partners to strengthen Ukraine’s air shield.

“This attack proves that their goal is not only Ukraine and not only the lives of our people. About a million tons of food are stored in the ports that were attacked today. This amount should have been delivered to African and Asian countries a long time ago. The port terminal, which was the most affected by last evening’s Russian terror, stored 60 thousand tons of agricultural products that were to be sent to China. This means that everyone was affected by the Russian terror. Everyone should be interested in Russia being held accountable for its terror,” he emphasized.

He expressed his gratitude to fighters, rescuers, medics, utility workers, local authorities and volunteers who help people overcome the consequences of such attacks.

Zelenskyy noted that he had spoken with those responsible, and the first repair work had already begun in the settlements affected by last night.

He added that he had talks with the Prime Minister of Ireland, who is visiting Ukraine: “Although the country is neutral, the Irish do not remain neutral in moral trials. Given such aggression, they are clearly on the bright side of history: they help us politically, in security matters, economically and through sanctions.”

The President of Ukraine said that he also met with Samantha Power, the head of USAID, the United States Agency for International Development, discussing the possibilities of infrastructure protection and the global role.

“We are already actively preparing for international events planned for August and September. In particular, today we had a meeting on the preparation of the summit of the Crimean platform at the level of heads of state and parliamentarians. We know for sure that this summit will be meaningful and Crimea will come even closer to returning to the free world, even closer to freedom from occupation. All Ukrainian land and all Ukrainians must be free,” he concluded.

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