An adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, Petro Andryushchenko, has refused Russia’s ultimatum to cease defending Mariupol. He reported that on Telegram on Sunday, writes the American news channel CNN† “As of today, our fighters will continue to hold the defence,” the adviser wrote.
In the night from Saturday to Sunday, the Russian army called on Ukrainian fighters in Mariupol to surrender with an ultimatum. The ultimatum went into effect at 6 a.m. (Moscow time) on Sunday morning and lasted for seven hours. Russia promised not to kill the fighters who surrender.
Russia claims that Mariupol has been largely conquered. Only in the steel factory Azovstal are said to be soldiers. It would be members of the Azov battalion and regular Ukrainian soldiers, although, according to Russian armed forces, there are also foreign fighters among them. Both Russia and Ukraine say the situation in the Ukrainian port city and around the factory is very serious.
According to Andryushchenko, Mariupol’s defenses also continue outside the steel plant. The image that Russia is trying to convey of the city, in which there is only fighting around the Azovstal factory, “doesn’t correspond to reality,” he says. “Last night there was fighting in Taganrog Street, three miles from Azovstal.” During the fighting, Russian troops would again shell civilian targets “with heavy artillery.” These claims are for NRC cannot be independently verified.
This article is also part of our live blog: Ukraine rejects Russian ultimatum to surrender Mariupol