According to a statement from the Interministry Coordination Headquarters for Humanitarian Response in Ukraine, the decision came into force at 10:00 local time, and was the result of a request made by French President Emmanuel Macron to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

The Kiev corridor will pass through several towns in the direction of the city of Gomel, Belarus, while two exit routes will be established from Mariupol to Rostov-on-Don, Russia, and Zaporozhye, Ukraine.

In the case of Kharkov, civilians will be able to travel to the Russian city of Belgorod, and from Sumy they will also travel to Belgorod and the Ukrainian town of Poltava.

The Russian side notified the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the International Committee of the Red Cross about the opening of said humanitarian corridors.

“We warn that all attempts by the Ukrainian side to once again deceive Russia and the entire civilized world by interrupting the humanitarian operation allegedly because of the Russian Federation will be futile and meaningless this time,” the Russian agency coordinating the humanitarian response in Ukraine warned.

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