Russia-Ukraine live news: ‘Inhuman’ situation in Mariupol | Russia-Ukraine war News
- Ukrainian forces driven out of key city of Mariupol, Russia says
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Mariupol’s fate key to peace talks
- Russia renews strikes on Ukraine capital, other cities
- Moscow claims to have shot down arms shipment
- Russia announces general’s death in battle
Here are the latest updates:
Russia says if forces in Mariupol lay down arms their lives will be spared
Russia’s defence ministry says if Ukrainian forces still fighting in Mariupol lay down their arms starting at 6am Moscow time (03:00 GMT) their lives will be spared, Tass news agency reported.
Russia said the remaining fighters – which it claims are both Ukrainian and foreign – are blockaded in the Azovstal steel works.
Tass quoted Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, the director of the Russian National Center for Defence Management, as saying the situation in the plant was “catastrophic”.
Situation in Mariupol is ‘inhuman’: Ukraine leader
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the situation in Mariupol was “inhuman” and called on allies to provide heavy weapons in order to save the city from Russian forces.
“The situation in Mariupol remains as severe as possible – just inhuman. This is what the Russian Federation did, and deliberately continues to destroy cities. It is deliberately trying to destroy everyone who is there in Mariupol,” said the president.
“Although we have heard many intentions from those who wanted to help and who really have international prestige, nothing of that has been realized yet. However, we will not abandon these efforts.
Mariupol ‘entirely’ taken, Russia says urging remnants’ surrender
Strategic port city has been ’completely cleared’ with a small group of holdout fighters on the outskirts told to ‘lay down their arms’, the Russian defence ministry says.
Russia’s claim to have all but taken control of Mariupol – the scene of the war’s heaviest fighting and worst humanitarian catastrophe – could not be independently verified. It would be the first major city to have fallen to Russian forces since the February 24 invasion.
“The entire urban area of Mariupol has been completely cleared and remnants of the Ukrainian [armed] group are currently completely blockaded… Their only chance to save their lives is to voluntarily lay down their arms and surrender,” said Igor Konashenkov, the ministry’s chief spokesman.
Read more here
Russia announces general’s death in battle
A Russian general whose troops have been besieging Mariupol was buried in St Petersburg after dying in battle.
Major-General Vladimir Frolov was deputy commander of the 8th Army, which Russian media identified as being among the forces battering Mariupol for weeks.
Governor Alexander Beglov released a statement saying Frolov “died a heroic death in battle” without saying where or when he was killed. Ukraine has claimed that several Russian generals and dozens of other high-ranking officers have been killed during the war.
Austrian leader says Putin in ‘own war logic’
Austria’s chancellor said after meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow the Russian president is “in his own war logic” when it comes to Ukraine.
Karl Nehammer told broadcaster NBC in an interview he thinks Putin believes he is winning the war. Nehammer was the first European leader to meet Putin in Moscow since Russia launched its invasion on February 24. Nehammer had visited Bucha, Ukraine, the town outside of Kyiv where graphic evidence of killings and torture has emerged following the withdrawal of Russian forces.
Nehammer said he confronted Putin with what he had seen in Bucha and “it was not a friendly conversation”. Putin said “he will cooperate with an international investigation, on one hand, and on the other hand, he told me that he doesn’t trust the Western world. So this will be the problem now in the future.”
More than 23,000 Ukraine forces killed, Russian military says
Ukraine’s military has suffered 23,367 “irreplaceable losses” since the start of Russia’s invasion of the country, its military says.
Chief spokesman Igor Konashenkov said “the Ukrainian contingent’s casualties in Mariupol alone amounted to over 4,000 people”.
On Mariupol, Konashenkov said 1,464 Ukrainian servicemen had surrendered. “The number of those surrendering is growing by the day,” he said.
Russia shot down a Ukrainian military cargo plane in the Odesa area that was “set to deliver a large shipment of weapons supplied to Ukraine by western countries”, Konashenkov added.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed talks with Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, their second call since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Saudi readout of the call said the crown prince affirmed support for efforts that will lead to a political solution to the crisis in Ukraine.
The kingdom recently announced $10m in humanitarian aid for Ukrainian refugees.
Russian holding 1,700 Ukraine captives including civilians: Official
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk says 700 Ukrainian troops and more than 1,000 civilians – about half of them women – are currently being held captive by Russian forces.
Vereshchuk said Kyiv intends to swap the captive soldiers, since Ukraine holds about the same number of Russian troops, but demands to release the civilians “without any conditions”.
Zelenskyy says Ukraine could withdraw from peace talks over Mariupol
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has threatened to withdraw from the ongoing peace negotiations with Russia if Ukrainian fighters trapped in the port city of Mariupol are killed by Russian forces besieging the city.
“What they are doing right now … could put a stop to any form of negotiation,” Zelenskyy said in an interview with a Ukrainian news website.
“There are troops there who absolutely hate them, and I don’t think they will let them live,” the Ukrainian leader said, referring to the fact that many of the fighters trapped in the city are part of the nationalist-dominated Azov Batallion.
Russian navy commander meets crew of sunken Moskva
Russian Navy commander-in-chief Nikolay Yevmenov and other members of high command met with the crew of the sunken Moskva missile cruiser.
The Moskva sank on Thursday after it was heavily damaged. Ukrainian officials said their forces hit the vessel with missiles. Moscow did not acknowledge any attack, saying only a fire detonated ammunition on board.
Ukraine officials to visit US for key economic meetings
Ukraine is sending top officials to Washington for next week’s spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank where discussion will focus on the Russian invasion and its impact on the global economy.
Coming to the gathering are Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko and central bank governor Kyrylo Shevchenko, according to a World Bank official.
Please see news updates from April 16 here
Pingback: Order Psilocybin pills online
Pingback: วิเคราะห์บอลวันนี้