Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he does not want to give up any part of Ukraine's territory in exchange for peace, and while Moscow expressed its willingness to open a humanitarian corridor for ships carrying food to leave Ukraine, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry announced that 14 people were killed and more than 70 buildings destroyed in Russian bombing. In the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in the east of the country.

"Ukraine will fight until it regains all its lands," Zelensky said in Ukrainian during an event organized by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday.

The Ukrainian president made the remarks while digitally connected to a discussion on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.

Zelensky stated that he was ready for dialogue if Russia withdrew to the borders it had before the start of the war last February.

But he said he would only enter into talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin himself.

"I can only talk to the president directly, not to mediators," he added.

He pointed out that Russia is not currently negotiating seriously.

Zelensky: Russia is not negotiating seriously at the moment (Al-Jazeera)

In response to these statements, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko said that President Zelensky's declaration of his readiness to return to negotiations after the return of Russian forces to the borders of February 24 is unconstructive, as he put it.

Rudenko added that the conditions of Ukraine's leaders to return to negotiations raise doubts about the reality of their desire for a peaceful solution.

Russian steps

The Kremlin announced today, Wednesday, that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree facilitating the granting of Russian citizenship to residents of Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, over which Russian forces have taken control.

Earlier, the representative of the pro-Russian local administration in Zaporizhia province, Vladimir Rogov, confirmed that the province, after what he called its complete liberation from Ukrainian nationalists, will turn to become part of Russia.

Rogov demanded that the province become a full member of the Russian Federation, adding that the residents of the province want to be part of Russia.

Rogov also ruled out the return of Zaporozhye to Ukraine or even the possibility of negotiations with Kyiv.

The Russian war on Ukraine, which began 3 months ago, caused huge losses (French)

ship crisis

This comes at a time when the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister expressed Moscow's readiness to open a humanitarian corridor for ships carrying foodstuffs from Ukraine, and to start negotiations on this after Kyiv removes all mines in its ports around Russian merchant ships, he said.

And Andrei Rudenko said - as quoted by Russian news agencies - that "the solution to the food problem passes through a collective approach, including, in particular, the lifting of sanctions imposed on Russian exports and financial transactions."

He also demanded that Kyiv remove the mines planted in the ports on the Black Sea so that ships can export grain.

The diplomat stressed in this context that Russia is "ready to guarantee a humanitarian passage" for the ships.

Ukraine is known for its very fertile black soil, and before the Russian attack on its lands, it was the fourth global exporter of corn, and it is about to become the third exporter of wheat globally.

However, the conflict has greatly affected Ukrainian production, while Kyiv and Western countries accuse Moscow of blocking grain exports through the Black Sea, raising the possibility of a major global food crisis.


Siege and repercussions

For its part, the British Ministry of Defense stated that the Russian naval blockade had halted maritime trade in Ukrainian ports.

According to a report issued by the ministry, the continuation of the Russian naval blockade of Ukraine will lead to a shortage of supplies while increasing the prices of many basic commodities.

And the American newspaper "The Washington Post" quoted a US government document that the Russian Navy effectively controlled traffic in the northern third of the Black Sea, making it unsafe for commercial shipping.

On Tuesday evening, the Russian army, in turn, accused Western countries of seeking to "get the grain out of Ukraine as soon as possible...without fearing what might happen in this country once its grain stocks run out."

On another topic, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko said that Russia will discuss the possibility of holding a prisoner exchange with Ukraine once the captives who surrendered are convicted.

Russia and officials in areas controlled by Moscow-backed separatists have said some of those who surrendered should be prosecuted for war crimes.