Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sings the national anthem during his visit in Kherson, Ukraine November 14, 2022.
Press Service of the President of Ukraine | Reuters
Ukraine on Saturday accused the Kremlin of reviving Josef Stalin’s “genocide” tactics as Kiev commemorated the Soviet-era famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in the winter of 1932-1933.
The “Holodomor” day of remembrance comes as Ukraine is fighting to repel Russian forces of aggression and deal with widespread blackouts caused by air strikes that Kiev says are aimed at breaking its will to fight. general public.
“Previously they wanted to destroy us with famine, now – with darkness and cold,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. “We cannot be broken.”
Holodomor, which roughly translates to “die of hunger,” has increasingly played a central role in Ukrainian collective memory since the Maidan revolution in 2014 toppled a Russian-backed president and bolstered a sense of nationalism.
In November 1932, Soviet leader Stalin sent the police to confiscate all grain and livestock from the newly collectivized Ukrainian farms, including the seeds needed to plant the next crop.
Millions of Ukrainian peasants starved to death in the following months as a result of what Yale University historian Timothy Snyder called a “well-planned mass murder”.
“The Russians will pay the price for all the victims of Holodomor and answer for today’s crimes,” Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential administration, wrote on Telegram.
Russia has targeted critical infrastructure across Ukraine in recent weeks through air strikes that have caused widespread power outages and the killing of civilians.
Zelenskyy said late Friday that millions of Ukrainians are still without electricity following new strikes this week.
Artem Antonenko, a 23-year-old marketing expert, told Reuters in central Kyiv: “Winter is inherently difficult and if things continue like this, it will be very similar to what we read in the calendar books. history”.
The Kremlin has denied that its attacks, which only fueled Ukrainian public anger, were aimed at civilians but on Thursday said Kyiv could “end suffering” by responding Russian demands to settle the war.
In a statement on Saturday, Ukraine’s foreign ministry accused Moscow of reviving 1930s tactics.
“On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the 1932-1933 Holodomor in Ukraine, the Russian war of genocidal aggression pursues the same objective as in the 1932-1933 genocide: the abolition of the Ukrainian nation and its state status. “, the article wrote.
Moscow denies the deaths were caused by deliberate genocide and says Russians and other ethnic groups also suffer from starvation.
Ukrainians often mark the day of remembrance, which was established after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 and falls on the fourth Saturday in November, by placing candles in their windows.
Pope Francis this week compared Russia’s war in Ukraine to what he called the “terrible genocide” of the Stalin era and said that Ukrainians are now suffering “the martyrdom of foray”.
grain exports
The Kyiv Foreign Ministry also condemned what it said were Russia’s current efforts to weaponize food by undermining a United Nations-brokered agreement to unblock Ukraine’s grain exports through the Sea. Black.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg echoed a similar sentiment on Saturday when he spoke at the International Summit on Food Security in Kiev via video link alongside several other European leaders.
“Today, Russia is using famine as a weapon of war against Ukraine, and at the same time causing further division and instability among the rest of the world,” he said.
Russia’s ambassador to Turkey said on Friday that Moscow sends its representatives to inspect ships in Istanbul more each day than is required under the Black Sea grain deal, rejecting Ukraine’s accusations that Russia is slow down this process.
oil price ceiling
The price of Russian seaborne oil should be capped at $30 to $40 a barrel, lower than the level suggested by the Group of Seven, Zelenskyy said on Saturday.
European Union governments, seeking to limit Moscow’s ability to finance the war in Ukraine without triggering an oil supply shock, have been divided by the G-7 pushing for a cap set at 65 to 70 USD/barrel. It will go into effect on December 5.
Zelenskyy, who has repeatedly pushed allies to impose tougher sanctions of any kind on Russia, said: “The limit under consideration right now – around $60 – I think this is an artificial limit”.
“We want sanctions that will be very effective in this war, to limit them to $30-40, so that Russia feels them (sanctions),” he told a news conference.
The idea of this limit is to prohibit shipping, insurance and reinsurance companies from handling shipments of Russian crude around the globe, unless it is sold for less than the price set by the G7 and its allies. out.
Poland, Estonia and Lithuania are pushing for a much lower ceiling than $65 to $70 a barrel while Greece, Cyprus and Malta want a higher ceiling.
