Another attempt to open humanitarian corridors to evacuate 6,000 people from Mariupol to Zaporizhia fails
With the illusory intention of giving a conciliatory image in the midst of so much tragedy, the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitri Peskov, announced this Wednesday without providing details that Moscow has given Ukraine “a new draft agreement within the negotiating process (…) we expect a answer,” he added. The head of the Ukrainian negotiating delegation, presidential adviser Mikhailo Podoliak, confirmed receipt of the document and noted that “we are studying it.”
The last time Russia and Ukraine held face-to-face ceasefire talks was on March 29 in Istanbul, but to no avail. In Podoliak’s opinion, the situation is now even worse, since “the massacres in Bucha, Kramatorsk and the bombing of Mariupol have further weakened the atmosphere for dialogue.” Even Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s repeated interest in holding a meeting with Putin seems to have cooled. Turkey had been the last country to offer to host such a summit. Now Israel is proposing that Putin and Zelensky meet in Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, there is practically only one redoubt left in besieged Mariupol where the Ukrainian forces are resisting in their last throes, the Azovstal steelworks, which overlooks the port, and in whose underground passageways more than a thousand of civilians. Russian troops and separatist rebels in Donetsk say they control the rest of the city and on Wednesday launched a new appeal to its defenders to lay down their arms, the third attempt after Sunday and Tuesday failed.
Given this situation, the kyiv government claims to have reached a “preliminary” agreement with Russia to open a “corridor” that would allow 6,000 civilians to leave Mariupol. During the last four days no one has been able to evacuate due to the lack of agreement with the Russian troops. “Given the catastrophic humanitarian situation, this is where we will now focus our efforts. We have managed to preliminarily agree on a humanitarian corridor for women, children and the elderly,” said Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshuk on Wednesday.
According to his explanations, the refugee column would move from Mariupol to Zaporizhia. Although in the first hours, Vereshuk would regret that the initiative was not working. In fact, the mayor of this port city, Vadim Boichenko, who left there a few days ago, had clarified that “what we hear today about 90 buses and 6,000 citizens who will be able to reach Zaporizhia is preliminary. There are more than 100,000 people left in the city waiting for the evacuation (…) we will know soon if this plan can be implemented ».
Boichenko advised the population to take advantage of any possibility to flee a city where there have been no food supplies or clean water for a long time. There is also no electricity or conditions to care for the numerous wounded.
THE KEYS:
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Without result.
The last face-to-face negotiation for a ceasefire took place almost a month ago in Istanbul. -
Ambassador.
Israel says ‘ready’ to host first meeting between Zelensky and Putin
The last organized evacuation from Mariupol, in coordination with Russia, took place in early March. From there, the city was besieged, which gradually produced the humanitarian catastrophe that is observed today, after almost two months of fighting. It is estimated that there are some 20,000 corpses in the city scattered through the streets and houses, not counting those already buried in the patios of the houses.
“We live in the last days”
The Donbas rebels want to annex Mariupol because of the strategic importance of its port in the Sea of Azov and because its control will allow them to strengthen the land connection with the Crimean peninsula from Russia and secessionist Donetsk. “We may be living our last days, maybe hours,” acknowledged Serguiy Volyna, head of Ukraine’s 36th Marine Brigade, from the cellars of Azovstal. He claimed that the adversary outnumbered them “ten to one.”
The leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic issued a statement on Wednesday announcing that “five Ukrainian military officers laid down their arms and left the Azovstal factory of their own free will.” The day before, they stated in another press release that 140 civilians had been evacuated.
Meanwhile, after the beginning this week of the great offensive unleashed by Russia to take control of all of eastern Ukraine, Moscow troops tried this Wednesday to break, apparently without success, the Ukrainian defenses in Severodonetsk, Rubizhne, Popasna and in various locations near Kharkov.
According to the adviser to the Ukrainian Presidency, Oleksiy Arestovich, in his daily report, «the fighting continues in the Kharkov region, several towns have been liberated. The enemy tried to take Rubizhne and Popasna, but the offensive was repulsed. In the Zaporizhia direction, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting active mobile defense. At Kherson, the enemy is trying to advance towards Mykolaiv. Military material continues to arrive from the West.
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