Ukraine: Moscow’s humanitarian corridors to Russia, Belarus ‘unacceptable’

Moscow on Monday announced new humanitarian corridors for civilians to flee from Ukraine to neighboring Russia and Belarus, a proposal that Kyiv is labeling as “unacceptable.”

The majority of the routes proposed by Moscow led to Russia or Belarus, which has close ties with Russia, according to Reuters. One of the pathways would bring civilians from Kyiv to Belarus, and another would transport individuals from Kharkiv to Russia, Reuters noted, citing maps published by the RIA news agency.

Moscow would also airlift individuals from Kyiv to Russia, the news service reported, citing the Russian defense ministry.

Pathways would also reportedly begin in Kharkiv, Sumy and Mariupol. 

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk said Russia’s cease-fire proposal was “unacceptable,” according to The Associated Press.

Additionally, a spokesperson for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky blasted the proposal as “completely immoral,” arguing that Moscow was making an attempt to “use people’s suffering to create a television picture,” according to Reuters.

“They are citizens of Ukraine, they should have the right to evacuate to the territory of Ukraine,” the spokesperson added.

Russia’s proposal for humanitarian corridors comes one day after a second evacuation attempt from Mariupol was canceled. On both Saturday and Sunday, a cease-fire to evacuate civilians from Ukraine failed.

On Saturday, both sides blamed one another for violating a cease-fire agreement, and on Sunday, the mayor of Mariupol — where civilians were trying to flee — accused Russian troops of breaking the deal with “intense shelling.”

The latest Russian proposition came on the twelfth day of the invasion, which began when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a military operation in Ukraine.

More than 1.7 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the invasion began thus far, the BBC reported on Monday, citing the United Nations.