Russia deliberately targeting oil refineries, factories: Ukrainian president

JAKARTA, Indonesia

Russia deliberately targeted Ukraine’s oil refineries and factories to create a crisis in the country, the Ukrainian president said on Friday.

In a virtual address at an event organized by Jakarta-based think tank Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine lost up to $5 billion and needs help from the world and the European Union to make up for its losses.

Regarding export of grain and cooking oil from Ukraine, Zelenskyy said Russia has cut Ukraine’s flow of exports by blocking the Black Sea.

“We cannot send these products, which the world needs, to the global market,” he said, warning that it will create a global food crisis.

The Ukrainian president added: “We are working to redirect our exports to new routes as much as possible amid the war.”

To a question about the G20 Summit to be held in Indonesia’s Bali island later this year, Zelenskyy said he would attend the summit remotely, adding: “What do we want from this meeting … we want our lives back. We want to reclaim our sovereignty.”​​​​​​​