Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says all cities except the Azovstal steel plant have been liberated.
Kyiv: Russian troops say they have captured the city of Mariupol in Ukraine. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has said that all parts of the city have been liberated, except for the Azovstal steel plant where Ukrainian troops are stationed.
Shoigu described the plant as ‘safely besieged’. Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed Mariupol’s victory as a “victory”. He ordered the army not to attack the remaining Ukrainian stronghold in Mariupol. Instead, Putin ordered the blockade to prevent “even a single fly from entering.”
If the steel plant is not captured by the Ukrainian army, it will lose the opportunity for the Russian army to declare complete victory in Mariupol. The capture of Mariupol, which witnessed the most dramatic events of the struggle between the two countries, is of strategic and symbolic significance.
The fall of Mariupol will not only make Ukraine an important port, but also complete a land bridge between Russia and the Crimean peninsula, making it easier for Russian troops to get anywhere in the Donbass.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials did not comment on the latest developments. But it was earlier reported that four buses with civilians had fled the city after several failed attempts. Thousands of people still remain in the city.
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vareshchuk said on Thursday that another attempt would be made to evacuate civilians from Mariupol.
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