Moscow [Russia], September 26: Steelmaker ArcelorMittal said it was shutting production at Ukraine's largest steel plant, underscoring the growing economic toll of Russia's airstrikes that on Friday killed seven people in Kyiv including a 14-year-old boy and injured 58.
ArcelorMittal said on Friday it had informed the Ukrainian government that "safe and sustainable" operations were not possible after four strikes in five weeks caused extensive damage and killed five workers at the southeastern plant.
The shutdown is another blow to Ukraine's once-mighty steel sector, which previously accounted for 15% of the country's exports but has come under pressure from Russian attacks and restrictions from the EU, its top trading partner.
Russia has intensified air strikes across Ukraine in recent months using ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones that have hit businesses, logistics networks, Black Sea port facilities and civilian infrastructure.
The economic impact of the attacks is cutting tax revenue and leaving the government with a widening budget gap as it seeks to finance the war, officials have said.
"The Russians are constantly expanding their escalation operation," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, noting that a food warehouse used by McDonald's was also hit on Friday. "It is important that the world responds to all of this and that Russia feels the response to its terror."
Ukraine has also boosted attacks on Russia, targeting defence and energy facilities as well as online retailers to try to undermine revenues and support for Moscow's war effort.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking in St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, said Ukrainian forces had instigated attacks "on every front" and should be made to feel the effect of retaliatory strikes.
He said proposals for new peace talks and a ceasefire remained on the table, but Moscow had "to think carefully" about how to respond.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
