Russia has stolen 400,000 tonnes of grain from occupied regions in Ukraine, an official has said, sparking fears of a devastating food crisis in the country.
Ukraine's Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Taras Vysotsky, said that 100,000 tonnes had been taken from the Zaporizhia, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
The minister noted that the stolen grain was from each regions' supply set aside to be used before the next harvest, meaning there is a rising threat of famine amidst Russia's brutal invasion of the country.
Vysotsky's comments came after a video emerged from Ukraine that purportedly showed lorries carrying Ukrainian grain out of the country towards Russia.
The footage, filmed from inside a car driving along-side the lorries, showed a convoy of trucks with the pro-Russian war symbol 'Z' painted on the rear.
In addition to stealing grain, Russia has attacked grain silos, farming infrastructure and fertiliser stores, and has stolen millions of pounds worth of farming vehicles.
This has prompted accusations against Moscow that it is attempting to starve Ukraine's resistance by orchestrating a famine.
Lyudmyla Denisova, Ukraine's human rights ombudswoman, said on Monday that Russian troops were 'purposely using measures' to 'cause the Holodomor in Ukraine' - in reference to the Soviet famine in Ukraine from 1932 to 1933.
The Holodomor, or Great Famine, killed as many as 10 million Ukrainians and is recognised as genocide by several countries. Many people insist it was a deliberate policy of genocide through starvation engineered by Soviet leadership
Speaking on Ukrainian television on Tuesday, Taras Vysotsky said: 'We already have confirmation from each region - Zaporizhia region, Kherson region, Donetsk, Luhansk region - that about 100 thousand (tons of grain have been taken to Russia).'
He said the grain was taken from stores that were being relied upon to feed Ukrainians until the next harvest in the country.
His comments came after Ms Denisova took to Facebook to accuse Putin of trying to orchestrate a new Holodomor.