Ukraine asks Red Cross not to open office in Russia's Rostov-on-Don

FILE PHOTO: A man fleeing Russia's invasion of Ukraine walks out the Red Cross tent, outside the train station in Lviv, Ukraine March 21, 2022. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

(Reuters) - Ukraine has asked the International Committee of the Red Cross not to open a planned office in Russia's Rostov-on-Don, saying it would legitimise Moscow's "humanitarian corridors" and the abduction and forced deportation of Ukranians.

The head of the ICRC said on Thursday after his talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that agreement between the Russian and Ukrainian armies was needed before civilians could be evacuated properly from war-torn Ukraine.