A Russian ultimatum for the last remaining Ukrainian forces in Mariupol to surrender expired yesterday, with Moscow poised for a major strategic victory in the southeastern port city.
In Kyiv, renewed Russian air strikes hit an armaments factory, despite Moscow shifting its military focus to gaining control of the eastern Donbas region and forging a land corridor to already-annexed Crimea.
“During the night, high-precision, air-launched missiles destroyed an ammunitions factory near the settlement of Brovary, Kyiv region,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said.
Photo: AFP
It was the third such air strike near the capital in as many days.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk urged Russian forces to allow evacuations from Mariupol, which Moscow’s forces claim to have brought under their control, although Ukrainian fighters remain holed up in the city’s fortress-like steelworks.
Moscow on Saturday issued an ultimatum to the fighters, urging them to lay down their weapons by 6am Moscow time and evacuate the area before 1pm.
“Once again, we demand the opening of a humanitarian corridor for the evacuation of civilians, especially women and children, from Mariupol,” Vereshchuk wrote.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that if Russian forces kill Kyiv’s troops remaining to defend the city, then a fledgling negotiation process to end nearly two months of fighting would be ended.
He called on the West to immediately provide heavy weapons.
Mariupol has become a symbol of Ukraine’s unexpectedly fierce resistance since Russian troops invaded on Feb. 24.
“The situation in Mariupol remains as severe as possible. Just inhuman,” Zelenskiy said in a video address. “Russia is deliberately trying to destroy everyone who is there.”
Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov said the city was on “the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe,” adding that the country was compiling evidence of alleged Russian atrocities there.
“We will hand everything over to The Hague. There will be no impunity,” he said.
With fighting raging in the east, Vereshchuk said that humanitarian corridors allowing civilians to flee would not open yesterday after failing to agree to terms with Russian forces.
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