Ukraine: Russian ‘pounding’ of leveled Mariupol – Battles in Kharkov, blows in Kyiv

LAST UPDATE: 13.57

Moscow is escalating the scale of its attack on various fronts in Ukraine, with the bombing of the martyred Mariupol being unstoppable. There are reports of 100,000 people trapped in the city, without water, food or medicine.

The suburbs of Kiev, Kharkiv and other major cities are also targeted. The fence around Odessa is narrowing, at a time when the Russians are maintaining the nuclear threat. Diplomatic contacts have not borne fruit, while Ukrainian President Zelensky is requesting a meeting with Russian President Putin for the umpteenth time.

Absolute destruction in Mariupol

New satellite photos show the absolute destruction in Mariupol. The city is at the mercy of Russian bombing. A city that has turned to ashes.

Reports indicate that Russian forces have now entered the city and are threatening the civilian population, while it is being ruthlessly bombarded from all sides, even by Russian ships in the Sea of ​​Azov.

More than a hundred thousand civilians remain trapped in miserable conditions. In absolute exclusion. Families who managed to escape the city describe images of horror with the dead lying unburied in the streets while most of the city has been leveled.

An agreement was reached to try to evacuate civilians trapped in Ukrainian cities through nine “humanitarian corridors” Today, said the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Irina Verestsuk. Noting that no agreement had been reached with Russia on a safe corridor from the heart of Mariupol, Verestsuk said people who wanted to leave the besieged port city in southern Ukraine would be able to find transportation in nearby Berdyansk.

At the same time the governor of the region Luhansk in eastern Ukraine said an agreement had been reached on a local ceasefire to evacuate civilians trapped by fighting in the region. Governor Serhi Gaidai said in the Telegram messaging application that the local ceasefire will take effect at 09:00 local time (Greek time).

Attacks continue in Kyiv

At least four people were slightly injured this morning when Russian forces bombed a district of Kiev, while many houses in the area were damaged, according to converging sources. Artillery fire broke out early this morning in the Nivki district, located in the part of Kiev which is about five kilometers from the front line.

A house was completely destroyed, many apartment buildings were damaged by the debris, while the windows of houses and shop windows were broken. Four people were slightly injured in the bombing, according to local authorities in the Ukrainian capital.

“The enemy bombed again.

Anxiety in Hersonissos, battles in the suburbs

Concern is also expressed about the Russian-occupied Kherson. 300,000 residents see food and medicine supplies depleted as residents continue to protest. In the city of Voznesenks, Ukrainian forces destroyed a bridge in order to stop the advance towards Odessa.

The Ukrainian army says it has repulsed an attack by Russian troops in Kharkov in the east of the country, with the Russian side launching a helicopter attack.

Fighting continues outside Kyiv. However, the Ukrainians claim that the city of Makariv, 60 km west, was recaptured, blocking the flow of Russian forces.

Images of disaster further north in the city of Mainka in the Donetsk region. Soldiers say the Russians are using all kinds of weapons, despite the civilian population remaining in the city.

At the same time, Kyiv alleges that the Russians used white phosphorus bombs in Kramatorsk and bombed a pediatric clinic in the Luhansk region. Allegations have also surfaced that the Russians have abducted 2,389 children from Donbas.

Odessa is waiting with bated breath

In Odessa, the concern is growing that the war will reach the city as well. Army and civilians fortify the city amid explosions, as concerns about anti-aircraft fire and explosions grow.

Hundreds of refugees are leaving the city, while buses from Nikolaev are transporting refugees to the city.

Zelensky: Efforts to free civilians are hampered

The Ukrainian president complains that efforts to free civilians are being thwarted. “Today, by the way, one of the humanitarian convoys has been captured by Russian occupiers near Manus on the agreed route. Emergency rescuers and bus drivers have been captured,” said Volodymyr Zelensky.

Speaking in the Japanese parliament, he called for increased pressure on Russia, which he again accused of not letting the world go.

Nuclear threat and diplomacy

Despite strong Ukrainian resistance, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peshkov said in an interview with CNN that the Russian operation was progressing according to plan. Speaking to CNN and Christian Amanpour, he did not rule out the use of nuclear weapons.

The Russian-Ukrainian negotiations continue without substantial development. However, the French Presidency considers that there is no agreement on a ceasefire in the near future and that mediation efforts need to be continued.

German Chancellor Olaf Soltz has called for an immediate end to the war in Ukraine. Speaking in the Federal Parliament, he ruled out NATO involvement in the war in Ukraine.

At the same time, US President Joe Biden is going to Europe tomorrow, Thursday, where he will try to strengthen the unity of the West but also to tighten the sanctions against Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.

“The active phase of the Russian invasion will have collapsed in April”

The adviser to the Ukrainian president, Oleksy Arestovich, said on Wednesday that he expected the “active phase of the Russian invasion to end by the end of April”, as the Russian advance had already stopped in many areas.

According to Reuters, Arestovich told a Ukrainian television station that Russia had already lost 40% of its invading forces and downgraded the prospect of Moscow using nuclear weapons.

Prisoner exchanges

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced today that two exchanges of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners had taken place after Moscow forces invaded Ukraine, without specifying when this happened or how many prisoners were involved.

“The Russian Defense Ministry is making daily arrangements for humanitarian corridors and the evacuation of civilians from cities. In addition, two exchanges of prisoners have taken place between Russia and Ukraine,” the ministry said in a statement condemning the killings. EU vis-.-Vis Moscow and its military offensive in its neighboring country.

121 children have lost their lives

As a result of the war in Ukraine, 121 children have been killed so far, the office of the country’s attorney general announced in a post on the Telegram application.

He added that another 167 children had been injured.

Counterattack

In southern Ukraine, where the only major city they control is Kherson, Russian forces are trying to advance west and into the Black Sea, but have not been able to advance around Mykolaif.

The Ukrainians “have now, in some cases, come under attack,” Pentagon spokesman John Kerby told CNN, “they are chasing and pushing the Russians” out of the occupied territories. ” According to him, the Russian army has problems with logistics, supply, coordination, administration, communication, while “it has not succeeded” in achieving many of its goals.

Americans claim that the balance of power has changed. A senior Pentagon official said last night that “for the first time” the Russians saw the level of combat power they had amassed in Belarus and on the border with Ukraine fall “below 90%”.

The New York Times, citing sources close to the Pentagon, noted that the losses of 10% of the Russian expeditionary force (dead and wounded) undermine its ability to operate.

According to Washington, Russia has been intensifying its air and naval operations in recent days in the face of resistance from Ukrainian forces. “What we are seeing is a desperate attempt by the Russians to regain momentum,” a Pentagon official said earlier this week.

Washington, which has expressed concern about China’s possible military and financial support for Russia, “does not see” a military supply from Beijing to Moscow following talks between Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Sh. last night.