Russia’s Defense Ministry has issued a new call to Ukrainian soldiers stationed at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol to lay down their arms on Wednesday.
He stressed that not a single Ukrainian soldier had accepted the previous proposal for surrender of weapons today.
Russian troops will maintain a ceasefire in the area around Azovstal while the proposal is in force, starting at 2 pm on April 20, according to a statement from the Russian Defense Ministry.
According to newer reports, the vast factory has been almost leveled by Russian bombing, with the fate of civilians unknown. The Russians released a video of 120 civilians fleeing the area.
ZAzov says Azovstal plant bombed, almost completely destroyed.
Mariupol City Council said more than 1,000 civilians are hiding in underground shelters of the country’s main metallurgical plant, where the last defenders are holding out against Russian forces.
– The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) April 19, 2022
OreMore than 120 civilians left #Azovstal
Taking advantage of a short lull, the civilians of Mariupol, who became hostages of neo-Nazi militants, were finally able to get out of the basements of houses that stand directly at the main Azovstal checkpoint. pic.twitter.com/8HaU142RSh
– Freedom Truth Honor 🇺🇳 (@ FreedomHonor666) April 19, 2022
The Ukrainians, however, do not confirm the withdrawal of civilians from Russian forces and express fears of hundreds of deaths in the basements of the factory.
Russian forces are covering more and more territory in the Donbas area, facing the Ukrainian army in various places. According to the latest reports, the city of Kremina, as well as the surrounding areas, have been completely controlled.
Kyiv: Russia hits Azovstal with bombs to destroy shelters
Russia is hitting the Azovstal steel plant, one of the last pockets of resistance in Mariupol, with bunker-buster bombs, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Mikhail Pontoliak.
“People are watching the killing of children online and remain silent,” Pontoliak wrote on Twitter.
On Monday, the Mariupol city council said more than 1,000 civilians had taken refuge in the basement, under the factory. Russia denies targeting civilians.
More than 20,000 mercenaries from Syria and Libya in Donbas
Russia is said to be using all its resources in the battle for Donbas, as a European official says it has recruited at least 20,000 mercenaries from Syria and Libya.
These groups of fighters, always according to a European official who spoke to the Guardian, do not carry heavy weapons, but act in coordination in various places in Dodetsk and Lugansk.
According to this source, there have been “transfers, from areas such as Syria and Libya, to the eastern region of Donbass”, where Russia has launched a new phase of its military operations. The official said it was difficult to estimate exactly how many of these “10-20,000 men” belong to Wagner and how many are fighters from Libya or Syria.
Pontoliak: Russia wants to crush fighters in Mariupol for reasons of “internal propaganda”
The siege of Mariupol by Russian forces has further complicated the negotiation process for the war in Ukraine and it is difficult to estimate when the direct talks will be resumed, Ukrainian negotiator and adviser to the Ukrainian presidency Mikhail P. told Reuters today.
Ukraine’s chief negotiator has said it is difficult to predict when peace talks will resume due to the siege of Mariupol by Russia and Moscow’s desire to strengthen its position through a new military offensive.
In a written response to questions from Reuters, the Ukrainian official said he believed Moscow was betting on strengthening its military position in a new offensive launched in eastern Ukraine.
Kyiv and Moscow have not held face-to-face talks since March 29, and the atmosphere has been sharpened by Ukrainian allegations that Russian troops committed atrocities in the city of Butsa near the Ukrainian capital. Moscow has denied the allegations, with Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday awarding an honorary title for “heroism” to the 64th Motorized Rifle Brigade, which is accused by Kyiv of taking part in massacres in the city.
Pontoliak told Reuters that the ongoing siege of Mariupol and the repeated failure of efforts to organize safe corridors to evacuate trapped Ukrainian civilians had also complicated matters.
“Obviously, against the background of the Mariupol tragedy, the negotiation process has become even more complicated”Pontoliak said, speaking of the southern port where Moscow gave an ultimatum earlier today to Ukrainian forces and foreign mercenaries to surrender and leave the Azovstal steel plant by noon Moscow time (and Greek time) if they want to live.
“Russia provocatively denies any manifestation of humanitarianism when it comes to certain humanitarian corridors. “Especially when we talk about Mariupol”, he added.
The two sides have blamed each other for the collapse of peace talks and the failure of negotiations to open safe corridors for the evacuation of civilians.
The Ukrainian official said that some contacts are continuing online to “determine” agreements reached on future guarantees for Ukraine’s security, ensuring that they are in accordance with international law.
“It is difficult to say when the next round of face-to-face negotiations will be possible, because the Russians are seriously betting on profits from the so-called ‘second stage of the special operation’.”he said.
Local authorities say thousands of people have been killed in the siege of Mariupol.
Russia today called on the entire Ukrainian army to “lay down its arms” and the last defenders of the city of Mariupol to end their “senseless resistance.”
Pontoliak said that Russia wants to crush the last fighters in Mariupol for “internal propaganda” purposes.
Russia has denied since the beginning of the invasion that it is targeting civilians in its “special operation”, which it says is aimed at demilitarizing Ukraine and eradicating dangerous nationalists, and claims that far-right fighters are among Mariupol’s defenders. Kyiv and the West reject Russia’s claims as a pretext for an unprovoked invasion.
Moscow accuses Ukraine of directing atrocities to undermine peace talks, which President Putin said on April 12 were deadlocked.
Ukrainian troops have shown reporters the bodies of civilians they say were killed by Russian forces in the city of Butcha outside Kyiv after Russian troops withdrew. Reuters saw bodies in the city, but could not independently verify who was responsible for the killings.
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