Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani donates $8.7mn to Ukraine

Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani said he will donate USD 8.7 million to the government of Ukraine, calling Russia's invasion "a challenge to democracy". The founder of e-commerce giant Rakuten said in a letter addressed to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky that the donation of 1 billion yen ($8.7 million) will go toward "humanitarian activities to help people in Ukraine who are victims of the violence".

“My thoughts are with you and Ukraine people. I believe that the trampling of a peaceful and democratic Ukraine by unjustified force is a challenge to democracy. I sincerely hope that Russia and Ukraine can resolve this issue peacefully and that Ukraine people can have peace again as soon as possible,” Hiroshi Mikitani wrote in his letter to Ukraine’s President.

Following Russia’s invasion on Ukraine, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said that more than 150,000 people have been forced to flee owing to Putin’s decision of ‘war’.

"More than 150,000 Ukrainian refugees have now crossed into neighboring countries, half of them to Poland, and many to Hungary, Moldova, Romania and beyond," he said.

"Displacement in Ukraine is also growing but the military situation makes it difficult to estimate numbers and provide aid," Grandi said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, Russians have offered talks with Ukraine over the ongoing conflict in Belarus.Ukraine President Zelenskiy, however, rejected the offer saying he cannot hold talks in a country which acted as a staging ground for Moscow’s invasion.