Ukraine retakes key Kyiv suburb as fleeing Mariupol civilians describe corpses in the streets
A Ukrainian serviceman guards his position in Mariupol, Ukraine. Picture: AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov
Ukrainian forces said they retook a strategically important suburb of the capital early Tuesday, while Russia’s attack on the embattled southern port of Mariupol raged unabated, with fleeing civilians describing relentless bombardments and corpses lying in the streets.
Explosions and bursts of gunfire shook Kyiv, and black smoke rose from a spot in the north.
Intensified artillery fire could be heard from the north-west, where Russia has sought to encircle and capture several suburban areas of the capital, a crucial target.
Residents sheltered at home or underground under a 35-hour curfew imposed by authorities in the capital that runs to Wednesday morning.
Russian forces also pressed their siege of Mariupol after the southern port city’s defenders refused demands to surrender, with fleeing civilians describing relentless bombardments and corpses lying in the streets.
But the Kremlin’s ground offensive in other parts of the country advanced slowly or not at all, repulsed by lethal hit-and-run attacks by the Ukrainians.
Early Tuesday, Ukrainian troops forced Russian forces out of the Kyiv suburb of Makariv after a fierce battle, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said. The regained territory allowed Ukrainian forces to retake control of a key highway and block Russian troops from surrounding Kyiv from the northwest.
But the Defense Ministry said Russian forces battling toward Kyiv were able to partially take other northwest suburbs, Bucha, Hostomel and Irpin, some of which had been under attack almost since Russia’s military invaded late last month.
With troops bogged down in many places, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces are increasingly concentrating their air power and artillery on Ukraine’s cities and the civilians living there, killing uncounted numbers and sending millions fleeing.
The invasion has driven more than 10 million people from their homes, a number similar to the population of Portugal and almost a quarter of Ukraine’s pre-war population, according to the United Nations.
The UN has confirmed more than 900 civilian deaths while saying the real toll is probably much higher.
Thousands of civilians are believed to have died, though the total remains unclear. Estimates of Russian military casualties vary widely, but even conservative figures by Western officials are in the low thousands.
On Monday, Russia’s pro-Kremlin Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, citing the defence ministry, reported that almost 10,000 Russian soldiers had been killed. The report was quickly removed, and the newspaper blamed hackers. The Kremlin refused to comment.
Beyond the terrible human toll, the war has shaken the post-Cold War global security consensus, imperilled the world supply of key crops, and raised worries it could set off a nuclear accident.
Wildfires broke out near the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant, but Ukraine’s natural resources minister said they had been extinguished and radiation was within normal levels. Chernobyl was the scene of the world’s worst nuclear disaster in 1986.
US and British officials say Kyiv remains Russia’s primary objective. The bulk of Moscow’s forces remain miles from the centre, but missiles and artillery have destroyed apartment buildings and a large shopping mall, which was left a smoking ruin after being hit late on Sunday by strikes that killed eight people, according to emergency officials.
A senior US defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the military’s assessment, said Russia had increased air sorties over the past two days, carrying out as many as 300 in the past 24 hours, and has fired more than 1,100 missiles into Ukraine since the invasion began.
US President Joe Biden, who is heading to Europe later in the week to meet with allies, suggested Monday evening that worse may be still to come.
“Putin’s back is against the wall,” Mr Biden said.
“He wasn’t anticipating the extent or the strength of our unity. And the more his back is against the wall, the greater the severity of the tactics he may employ.”
Mr Biden reiterated accusations that Putin is considering resorting to using chemical weapons.
In a video address Monday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed those who have fought back against Russia.
“There is no need to organise resistance,” Zelenskyy said. “Resistance for Ukrainians is part of their soul.”
Talks between Russia and Ukraine have continued by video but failed to bridge the chasm between the two sides. Zelenskyy told Ukrainian television late Monday that he would be prepared to consider waiving any NATO bid by Ukraine — a key Russian demand — in exchange for a cease-fire, the withdrawal of Russian troops and a guarantee of Ukraine’s security.
Zelenskyy also suggested Kyiv would be open to future discussions on the status of Crimea, which Russia seized in 2014, and the regions of the eastern Donbas region held by Russian-backed separatists. But he said that was a topic for another time.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he saw progress in the talks.
“From my outreach with various actors, elements of diplomatic progress are coming into view on several key issues,” and the gains are enough to end hostilities now, he said.
One Western official, though, said that there were no signs Moscow was ready to compromise.
As part of a series of addresses to foreign legislatures to drum up support for Ukraine, Mr Zelensky spoke to Italian legislators on Tuesday, telling them that the besieged port of Mariupol had been utterly destroyed in the Russian onslaught.
He also spoke to Pope Francis.
“Imagine a Genoa completely burned down,” he said, citing an Italian port city of a similar size. He said 117 children had been killed in the war so far.
In Mariupol, with communications crippled, movement restricted and many residents in hiding, the fate of those inside an art school flattened on Sunday and a theatre that was blown apart four days earlier was unclear. More than 1,300 people were believed to be sheltering in the theater, and 400 were estimated to have been in the art school.
The city council said on Tuesday that more than 1,100 people who had escaped the besieged city were on their way in a convoy of buses to another city to Mariupol’s north-west.
But the Red Cross said a humanitarian aid convoy trying to reach the embattled city with desperately needed supplies still had not been able to enter.
Perched on the Sea of Azov, Mariupol is a crucial port for Ukraine and lies along a stretch of territory between Russia and Crimea. As such, it is a key target that has been besieged for more than three weeks and has seen some of the worst suffering of the war.
It is not clear how close its capture might be. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday that their forces were still defending the city and had destroyed a Russian patrol boat and electronic warfare complex.
Those who have made it out of Mariupol told of a devastated city.
“There are no buildings there anymore,” said 77-year-old Maria Fiodorova, who crossed the border to Poland on Monday after five days of travel.
Overall, more than 3.5 million people have fled Ukraine, while another 6.5 million have been displaced inside the country.
Matthew Saltmarsh, a spokesperson for the UN refugee agency, called the speed and scale of people fleeing danger in Ukraine “unprecedented in recent memory”.
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