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Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2022 17:36:09 GMT
Russian troops have begun the battle for Donbas, Ukraine says - BBC News
172,529 views Apr 19, 2022 President Zelensky says the battle for the Donbas region, regarded as the second phase of the war, has begun after Russia launched a major offensive in the east of Ukraine.
Ukraine says that a large proportion of the Russian forces is now focusing on the eastern region of Donbas. Russia has now taken control of the Ukrainian city of Kreminna as part of what appears to be a plan to surround the region.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has said this is a turning point in Russia’s “special military operation”
Russian troops seized a frontline Ukrainian city on Tuesday, hours after starting a long-anticipated offensive in eastern Ukraine that the Kyiv government has called the Battle of the Donbas.
Thousands of troops pressed an advance across almost the entire stretch of the eastern front as the assault began with massive Russian artillery and rocket barrages. Ukrainian officials said their soldiers would withstand the offensive.
In the ruins of Mariupol, the southeastern port that has withstood nearly eight weeks of siege, Russia gave the last Ukrainian defenders holed up in a steel works an ultimatum to surrender by noon (0900 GMT) or die.
Ukraine's lead negotiator meanwhile said it was hard to predict when peace talks might resume because of the Mariupol siege and the new military offensive.
On the international front, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a four-day humanitarian pause in the fighting over the Orthodox Easter weekend to allow civilians to leave areas of conflict and humanitarian aid to be delivered.
U.S. President Joe Biden consulted with fellow Western leaders "to discuss our continued support for Ukraine and efforts to hold Russia accountable", the White House said.
Ukraine said the new Russian assault had resulted in the capture of Kreminna, an administrative centre of 18,000 people in Luhansk, one of the two Donbas provinces.
Russian forces were attacking "on all sides", authorities were trying to evacuate civilians and it was impossible to tally the civilian dead, Luhansk regional governor Serhiy Gaidai said.
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Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2022 19:35:20 GMT
Russian forces started a brutal offensive in eastern Ukraine this week and have already seized what is believed to be their first Ukrainian city as part of their “next phase” of the war, which is nearing its third month. It comes as Russia called on Kyiv forces to surrender the final pocket of resistance in Mariupol as the port city remains on the brink of collapse.
‘Battle for Donbas’
The bodies of civilians killed in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine. (Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Russian forces had begun their long-expected offensive in a bid to take control of the country’s eastern region. “Now we can already state that the Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time,” he said in an address late Monday night. The Ukrainian president added that a “significant part of the entire Russian army is now concentrated on this offensive.” Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, called the latest offensive the “second phase of the war.” Zelensky has said he’s not willing to give up eastern territory in order to end the war.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Russian troops are focusing their efforts to take full control of the Donbas area. “The occupiers made an attempt to break through our defenses along nearly the entire frontline,” the General Staff said in a statement on Tuesday. Taking control of Donbas would mean that Russia would have a southern land corridor to the annexed Crimean Peninsula, which has been occupied by Kremlin forces since 2014.
Civilians evacuating from Kramatorsk, Ukraine, board a transport on Tuesday. (Andriy Andriyenko/AP)
Russian forces have taken control of the eastern city of Kreminna, the regional governor said Tuesday. Serhiy Gaidai, the governor of Luhansk, said in a briefing that Kyiv forces had left the city. “Kreminna is under the control of the ‘Orcs’ [Russians]. They have entered the city,” he said. “Our defenders had to withdraw. They have entrenched themselves in new positions and continue to fight the Russian army.” Gaidai added that Kremlin-led troops had attacked the city “from all sides.” Regarding the death toll from fighting, he said: “It is impossible to calculate the number of dead among the civilian population. We have official statistics — about 200 dead — but in reality there are many more.” It is believed to be the first city captured in Russia’s new offensive.
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Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2022 21:56:31 GMT
Russia Ukraine conflict: 300-mile offensive begins as Ukraine braces for more Russian strikes
43,102 views Apr 20, 2022 Russian forces have launched their offensive in the east of Ukraine.
They have attacked a 300-mile long front in the Donbas region with numerous towns and cities coming under intense artillery fire and the city of Kreminna reported to have already fallen to the invading troops.
Further south, Russian forces are said to have surrounded the last Ukrainians defending Mariupol - in a massive iron and steel works - where both civilians and fighters are believed to have taken refuge.
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Post by Admin on Apr 20, 2022 14:17:52 GMT
Ukraine War: The battle for the Donbas begins
304,716 views Apr 20, 2022 According to President Zelenskyy, the battle for the Donbas region could decide the outcome of the War.
Russia has launched attacks on cities across Ukraine's industrial heartland, and is pouring more forces into Eastern Ukraine.
It marks a renewed push along a 300-mile front, to take control of the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk that border Russia.
The village of Pisky, which borders the city of Donetsk, has been battered by heavy artillery.
Sky Correspondent Mark Stone sent this report from there.
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Post by Admin on Apr 20, 2022 17:09:08 GMT
Russia will allow some civilians to leave Mariupol, Ukraine - BBC News
13,527 views Apr 21, 2022 Ukraine says it has reached an agreement with Russia to open a humanitarian corridor to allow women, children and the elderly to flee the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
The announcement comes as a deadline for surrender, set by Russia, passes with Ukrainian troops continuing to defend the city.
Ukrainian fighters in Mariupol have appealed for international military help, as they say they are outnumbered ten to one.
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