Intense Russian air strikes hit the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol and street fighting raged on Tuesday, a day after it rejected Moscow’s demand to surrender, Ukrainian officials said. The city council said the bombardments were turning Mariupol into the “ashes of a dead land”.
Russia’s RIA news agency said Russian forces and units of Russian-backed separatists had taken about half of the city, citing a separatist leader.
The governor of Donetsk region, Pavlo Kyrylenko, said street fighting was taking place there and civilians, as well as Ukrainian troops, were coming under Russian fire.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday said Russian forces not only blocked a humanitarian convoy trying to reach besieged Mariupol with desperately needed supplies on Tuesday but took captive some of the rescue workers and bus drivers. He said the Russians had agreed to the route ahead of time. We are trying to organize stable humanitarian corridors for Mariupol residents, but almost all of our attempts, unfortunately, are foiled by the Russian occupiers, by shelling, or deliberate terror, Zelenskyy said in his nighttime video address to the nation.
Zelensky has been invited by NATO to address a summit on Thursday via video link
Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said the Russians seized 11 bus drivers and four rescue workers along with their vehicles. She said their fate was unknown. The figures couldn’t immediately be confirmed. More than 7,000 people were evacuated from Mariupol on Tuesday, but about 100,000 remain in the city in inhuman conditions, under a full blockade, without food, without water, without medicine and under constant shelling, under constant bombardment, Zelenskyy said.
On the other hand, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told CNN International that Russia would only use nuclear weapons in the context of the Ukraine conflict if it were facing an “existential threat.”
Replying to a question whether Biden administration has made up a decision on whether to apply or waive sanctions under CAATSA, vis-a-vis the S-400, US State Dept Spox Ned Price said, he “does not have any updates & US continue to work with the Congress and our Indian partners.”
Responding to ANI’s question on whether or not all QUAD partners are in sync with India’s historic relationship with Russia, US State Dept Spox Ned Price said, We’re a partner of India when it comes to shared interests…US is a partner of choice for India now.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres late on Tuesday said that it was time for Russia to end their “absurd war” in Ukraine, declaring the conflict “unwinnable.”