Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has slammed Russia’s airstrikes in the city of Sievierodonetsk as “madness” after they hit a chemical plant, causing a huge cloud of orange acid to rise into the sky.
Fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk has been intensifying in the past few days and Russia now controls most of the city, according to regional authorities.
“Given the presence of large-scale chemical production in Sievierodonetsk, the Russian army’s strikes there, including blind air bombing, are just crazy,” Mr Zelensky said in a video message.
The huge orange cloud is thought to be nitric acid, which causes irritation to the eyes and skin when people come into contact with it. Video of the plume rising into the sky was captured by a soldier in the region and posted on social media.
Mr Zelensky continued: “On the 97th day of this war, it is no longer surprising that for the Russian military, for Russian commanders, for Russian soldiers, any madness is absolutely acceptable”.
News of the attack was confirmed by the governor of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk on Tuesday. Serhiy Haidai said in a message on social media that the Russian strike had hit a tank containing nitric acid at the plant.
He said that Russia had “attacked the Azot factory from a plane, resulting in the release of toxic substances.”
The governor urged residents not to leave their homes or shelters.
He also said that Russian forces now control 70 per cent of the city, which is key to their advance in the Donbas region.
“If the Russians manage to take full control over Sievierodonetsk within two to three days, they will start installing artillery and mortars and will shell Lysychansk more intensively,” Mr Haidai said.
It comes as Russia accused the United States of adding fuel to the fire by supplying advanced rockets to Ukraine to aid their defence of the country.
“We believe that the US is deliberately pouring oil on the fire. The US is obviously holding the line that it will fight Russia to the last Ukrainian,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
