Ukraine news live: Mariupol residents ‘forced to hunt pigeons’ to eat due to lack of food; shopping centre attack shows Putin’s ‘depths of cruelty and

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has condemned the Kremlin’s “scumbag terrorists” and called the strike at a shopping centre in Kremenchuk today “one of the most defiant terrorist attacks in European history”.

In his nightly address, Mr Zelenskyy said fortunately many people had managed to get out of the shopping centre in time but there were “still people inside”.

“Today’s Russian strike at a shopping mall in Kremenchuk is one of the most defiant terrorist attacks in European history,” he said.

“A peaceful city, an ordinary shopping mall with women, children, ordinary civilians inside.”

He added: “Only completely scumbag terrorists, who should have no place on earth, can strike at such an object.

“This is not a mistaken missile strike, this is a calculated Russian strike on this shopping centre.”

Mr Zelenskyy went on to say that he had appealed to the United States to recognise Russia as a “state that sponsors terrorism”.

He added: “The Russian state has become the largest terrorist organisation in the world. And this is a fact. And this must be a legal fact. And everyone in the world must know that buying or transporting Russian oil, maintaining contacts with Russian banks, paying taxes and customs duties to the Russian state means giving money to terrorists.”

The comments come as G7 leaders said in a statement: “We stand united with Ukraine in mourning the innocent victims of this brutal attack. 

“Indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constitute a war crime. Russian President Putin and those responsible will be held to account.”