KYV: Ukrainian authorities were hoping to evacuate more civilians from the southern port city on Monday MariupolAs Russia’s offensive in the east of Ukraine The “active and heavy” fighting continued.
Kyiv said that more than 100 civilians were evacuated over the weekend from the giant Azovstal plant, the last holdout of Ukrainian forces in Mariupol, which has been surrounded by Russian forces since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
They waited on Monday in Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhya, where vehicles from UNICEF and other international NGOs were on standby.
In coordinated efforts between Ukraine, Russia and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), another evacuation was expected to begin on Monday, but at lunchtime, there was no sign of movement.
Several hundred Ukrainian soldiers and civilians are taking refuge in a maze of Soviet-era underground tunnels beneath steelworks, many of which require medical attention.
“For the first time, there has been an actual ceasefire of two days in the region. More than 100 civilians have already been evacuated – women and children first of all,” the president of Ukraine said. Volodymyr Zelensky Said late Sunday night.
The Russian armed forces said 46 civilians had left Azovstal on Saturday, and had “voluntarily” decided to remain in the separatist region of Donetsk.
Another 80 were dismissed on Sunday – 69 of which left for Kyiv-controlled territory, it said. The Russian ministry previously stated that they had been “handed over to UN and ICRC representatives”.
Mariupol is an important strategic center linking the southern and eastern parts of Russian-occupied Ukraine and has seen some of the worst fighting.
Russian sieges left residents in dire conditions, with little access to food, water and medicine, the city has become a symbol of a war that uprooted more than 13 million people from their homes and killed thousands .
‘Active and heavy fighting’
After failing to capture the capital Kyiv in the first few weeks of the war, Moscow’s forces have focused on the east of Ukraine, particularly the Donbass region, which includes the pro-Russian separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Ukraine’s General Staff said fighting is particularly intense around Izyum, Lyman and Rubizan, as the Russians prepare for their assault on Severodnetsk, which is still the last eastern city near Kyiv.
“The situation in the Lugansk region can be described in a few words – active and heavy fighting continues,” the Defense Ministry said.
The governor of Lugansk has said he expects more intense fighting before May 9, the day Russia celebrates the surrender of Nazi Germany to Allied forces, including the then Soviet Union, in 1945.
However, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Italian television late Sunday that Moscow’s military “will not artificially adjust its actions on any date, including Victory Day”.
In the same interview, when asked about Moscow’s stated aim of “de-Nazifi” and “de-militarization” of Ukraine’s conflict, Lavrov claimed that Adolf Hitler “had Jewish blood”.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid – who has sought to maintain a delicate balance between the two sides in the conflict – described the remarks as false, “unforgivable and insulting”.
– ‘Relentless fear’ – Russia has moved to tighten its grip on territories under its control and introduced the Russian ruble in the area of Kherson from Sunday – initially to be used with the Ukrainian hryvnia.
“From May 1, we will move to the ruble zone,” Kirill Stremosov, a civil and military administrator from Kherson, was quoted as saying by Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti.
He added that the hryvnia can be used for a period of four months, but then “we will completely switch to settlements in rubles”.
On the front lines in the east, Russian troops – helped by the massive use of artillery – have advanced slowly but steadily.
But Ukrainian forces have recaptured some areas in recent days, including the village of Ruska Lozova, which the evacuees said had been occupied for two months.
“It was two months of terrible fear. Nothing more, a terrifying and constant fear,” Natalia, a 28-year-old evacuee from Ruska Lozova, told AFP after arriving in Kharkiv.
Kyiv has acknowledged that Russian forces have captured several villages in the Donbass region and asked Western powers to deliver more heavy weapons to strengthen their defenses there.
Meanwhile, Kyiv said on Monday that its drone had sank two Russian patrol boats near Snake Island in the Black Sea, becoming a symbol of Ukraine’s resistance after troops rejected Russian demands to surrender.
“The barracks are working,” said Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzny, referring to Turkish-made military drones.
America eyes Kyiv return
Western powers have imposed unprecedented sanctions against Russia over the war while distributing money and weapons to Ukraine, including a $33 billion (31 billion euro) arms and support package announced by the US president. Joe Biden Last week.
Sources told AFP on Sunday that the European Union is phasing out restrictions on Russian oil imports as part of new measures that could be placed in member states.
Several diplomats said the oil embargo was made possible following a policy of U-turn by Germany, which had opposed the measure and was potentially harmful to its economy.
EU energy ministers were due to discuss the ban – which requires unanimous support and could still be derailed – at talks in Brussels on Monday.
In a symbolic show of support, several Western nations are also reopening their embassies in Kyiv that were closed due to the invasion, Denmark took Monday.
The US charge d’affaires Christina Kevyan announced that Washington hopes to have its diplomats back in Kyiv “by the end of the month”.
Russia is looking for ways to back down against rising international pressure.
The speaker of the lower house of parliament, Vyacheslav Volodin, suggested that Moscow confiscate the assets of Russia-based countries it considers hostile. “It is appropriate to take reciprocal measures,” he said.
Kyiv said that more than 100 civilians were evacuated over the weekend from the giant Azovstal plant, the last holdout of Ukrainian forces in Mariupol, which has been surrounded by Russian forces since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
They waited on Monday in Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhya, where vehicles from UNICEF and other international NGOs were on standby.
In coordinated efforts between Ukraine, Russia and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), another evacuation was expected to begin on Monday, but at lunchtime, there was no sign of movement.
Several hundred Ukrainian soldiers and civilians are taking refuge in a maze of Soviet-era underground tunnels beneath steelworks, many of which require medical attention.
“For the first time, there has been an actual ceasefire of two days in the region. More than 100 civilians have already been evacuated – women and children first of all,” the president of Ukraine said. Volodymyr Zelensky Said late Sunday night.
The Russian armed forces said 46 civilians had left Azovstal on Saturday, and had “voluntarily” decided to remain in the separatist region of Donetsk.
Another 80 were dismissed on Sunday – 69 of which left for Kyiv-controlled territory, it said. The Russian ministry previously stated that they had been “handed over to UN and ICRC representatives”.
Mariupol is an important strategic center linking the southern and eastern parts of Russian-occupied Ukraine and has seen some of the worst fighting.
Russian sieges left residents in dire conditions, with little access to food, water and medicine, the city has become a symbol of a war that uprooted more than 13 million people from their homes and killed thousands .
‘Active and heavy fighting’
After failing to capture the capital Kyiv in the first few weeks of the war, Moscow’s forces have focused on the east of Ukraine, particularly the Donbass region, which includes the pro-Russian separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Ukraine’s General Staff said fighting is particularly intense around Izyum, Lyman and Rubizan, as the Russians prepare for their assault on Severodnetsk, which is still the last eastern city near Kyiv.
“The situation in the Lugansk region can be described in a few words – active and heavy fighting continues,” the Defense Ministry said.
The governor of Lugansk has said he expects more intense fighting before May 9, the day Russia celebrates the surrender of Nazi Germany to Allied forces, including the then Soviet Union, in 1945.
However, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Italian television late Sunday that Moscow’s military “will not artificially adjust its actions on any date, including Victory Day”.
In the same interview, when asked about Moscow’s stated aim of “de-Nazifi” and “de-militarization” of Ukraine’s conflict, Lavrov claimed that Adolf Hitler “had Jewish blood”.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid – who has sought to maintain a delicate balance between the two sides in the conflict – described the remarks as false, “unforgivable and insulting”.
– ‘Relentless fear’ – Russia has moved to tighten its grip on territories under its control and introduced the Russian ruble in the area of Kherson from Sunday – initially to be used with the Ukrainian hryvnia.
“From May 1, we will move to the ruble zone,” Kirill Stremosov, a civil and military administrator from Kherson, was quoted as saying by Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti.
He added that the hryvnia can be used for a period of four months, but then “we will completely switch to settlements in rubles”.
On the front lines in the east, Russian troops – helped by the massive use of artillery – have advanced slowly but steadily.
But Ukrainian forces have recaptured some areas in recent days, including the village of Ruska Lozova, which the evacuees said had been occupied for two months.
“It was two months of terrible fear. Nothing more, a terrifying and constant fear,” Natalia, a 28-year-old evacuee from Ruska Lozova, told AFP after arriving in Kharkiv.
Kyiv has acknowledged that Russian forces have captured several villages in the Donbass region and asked Western powers to deliver more heavy weapons to strengthen their defenses there.
Meanwhile, Kyiv said on Monday that its drone had sank two Russian patrol boats near Snake Island in the Black Sea, becoming a symbol of Ukraine’s resistance after troops rejected Russian demands to surrender.
“The barracks are working,” said Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzny, referring to Turkish-made military drones.
America eyes Kyiv return
Western powers have imposed unprecedented sanctions against Russia over the war while distributing money and weapons to Ukraine, including a $33 billion (31 billion euro) arms and support package announced by the US president. Joe Biden Last week.
Sources told AFP on Sunday that the European Union is phasing out restrictions on Russian oil imports as part of new measures that could be placed in member states.
Several diplomats said the oil embargo was made possible following a policy of U-turn by Germany, which had opposed the measure and was potentially harmful to its economy.
EU energy ministers were due to discuss the ban – which requires unanimous support and could still be derailed – at talks in Brussels on Monday.
In a symbolic show of support, several Western nations are also reopening their embassies in Kyiv that were closed due to the invasion, Denmark took Monday.
The US charge d’affaires Christina Kevyan announced that Washington hopes to have its diplomats back in Kyiv “by the end of the month”.
Russia is looking for ways to back down against rising international pressure.
The speaker of the lower house of parliament, Vyacheslav Volodin, suggested that Moscow confiscate the assets of Russia-based countries it considers hostile. “It is appropriate to take reciprocal measures,” he said.