The warning was issued as the humanitarian crisis in Mariupol grew worsened. Russian forces blocked evacuation operations for the second consecutive day. The Kremlin also accused the Ukrainians, accusing them of attacking a fuel depot on Russian ground .
Although Ukraine denies responsibility for the fiery blast it was claimed by Moscow. However, if Moscow’s claims are confirmed, this would be the first time that a Ukrainian aircraft has entered Russian airspace.
Five weeks after Moscow sent 150,000 troops to Ukraine’s border, Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesperson, said that “certainly, this isn’t something that can be interpreted as creating comfortable circumstances for the continuation of negotiations.”
Russia continues to withdraw some of its ground troops from regions around Kyiv, after declaring earlier this week that it would reduce military activities near the Ukrainian capital and northern city of Chernihiv.
They are mining the entire territory. In his nightly video address to nation, Zelenskyy stated that they are mining homes, equipment, and even bodies of those who have been killed. There are many trip wires and other dangers.
He advised residents not to return to their normal lives until they were assured that the mines had been cleared and that there was no danger of being shelled.
While the Russians continued their bombardment of Kyiv and Chernihiv, the Ukrainian troops exploited this pullback on ground by mounting counterattacks to retake a number villages and towns.
Ukraine and its allies cautioned that the Kremlin was not de-escalating to foster trust at the bargaining tables, as it claimed. Instead, it is resupplying and shifting troops to the country’s east. These movements are a preparation for an intensified attack on the predominantly Russian-speaking Donbas region of the country’s eastern, which includes Mariupol.
Zelenskyy warned that there will be difficult battles as the Russians redeploy their troops. He said, “We are preparing to an even more active defense.”
The latest round of talks took place via video on Friday. He didn’t say anything. In return for security assurances from other countries, Ukraine stated that it was willing to drop its bid to join NATO.
Over 4 million people fled Ukraine after the invasion, leaving thousands of dead.
Mariupol, a southern port city besieged and shattered by war, has suffered some of the most horrific suffering of the conflict. Russian President Vladimir Putin would love to capture it. It would give his country an unbroken land link to Crimea that was seized from Ukraine in 2014.
According to Volodymyr Fesenko of Penta, the head of the Ukrainian think-tank Penta, Mariupol’s fate could decide the course of negotiations to end war.
Fesenko stated that Mariupol had become a symbol for Ukrainian resistance. Without its conquest, Putin could not sit down at the table. He said that the fall of Mariupol would open the door to a peace deal.
The International Committee for the Red Cross stated Friday that it could not carry out a bus operation to evacuate civilians from Mariupol. According to the International Committee for the Red Cross, a team was on its way but had had to return.
According to city authorities, the Russians had blocked Mariupol’s access.
“We don’t see a desire on the part Russians and their satellites that provide an opportunity to Mariupol residents for evacuation to territory controlled by Ukraine,” Petro Andreiushchenko, an advisor to the mayor, stated on Telegram.
According to him, Russian forces “are categorically against allowing any humanitarian cargo into the city, even in small quantities.”
It is believed that around 100,000 people remain in the city. This is down from a prewar 430,000. Weeks of Russian bombardment, street fighting, and severe shortages of water, fuel, and medicine have left the city with a significant number of residents.
Ewan Watson, spokesperson for Red Cross, stated that “we are running out adjectives to describe what residents of Mariupol have endured.”
According to Ukrainian authorities, Russian forces seized 14 tons food and medical supplies bound for Mariupol on Thursday.
Zelenskyy stated that more than 3,000 people were allowed to leave Mariupol Friday. He stated that he spoke by phone with French President Emmanuel Macron and Roberta Metsola, the president of European Parliament, about the humanitarian crisis during her visit in Kyiv.
Zelenskyy stated that Europe does not have the right to remain silent about what is going on in Mariupol. “The entire world must respond to this humanitarian disaster.”
Regional leader MaksimMarchenko stated that at least three Russian missiles were fired from the Crimean Peninsula, Odesa region, on the Black Sea. According to the Ukrainian military, the Iskander missiles were meant for critical infrastructure. However, they did not reach their targets due to Ukraine’s air defense forces. It was not clear where they struck. Marchenko stated that there were casualties but did not provide any details.
Odesa, Ukraine’s largest port, is also the headquarters for its navy.
Igor Konashenkov, a Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson, stated that two Ukrainian helicopter gunships flew in very low and attacked the civilian oil storage facility near Belgorod. It is located about 25 km (16 miles) from Ukraine’s border.
According to the regional governor, two workers were injured at the depot. However, Rosneft, the state-owned oil company, denied that anyone was hurt.
Oleksiy Danilov (secretary of Ukraine’s National Security Council) stated on Ukrainian television that “For some reason, they claim that we did it. But in reality, this doesn’t correspond with reality.”
Zelenskyy, in an interview with Fox refused to confirm whether Ukraine was behind the attack.
Russia has previously reported that Ukraine had been subject to cross-border bombardment, including last week’s attack on a military chaplain. However, it did not report an invasion of its airspace.
The Ukrainian military claimed that it had retaken 29 settlements within the Kyiv-Chernihiv region, amid the Russian withdrawal on the ground.
The Ukrainian military stated that Russian forces in the northeast continued to bombard Kharkiv and sought to seize the cities Popasna, Rubizhne, and Mariupol.
Russia began Friday its annual spring conscription. This was a plan to gather 134,500 men for one year of military service. Russian officials claim that new recruits will not be sent to “hot spots” or the frontlines, but many young Russians remain skeptical and fear that they might be drawn into the conflict.
The streets of Irpin were littered with damaged cars. This is a suburb that was popular among young families and is now in ruins. To get elderly people to safety, emergency workers carried them over the wrecked bridge.
A trio of wooden crosses were placed next to a damaged residential building. They marked the graves for a mother, son, and unidentified man. One resident, who only gave her name as Lila, said that she assisted in the hurried burial of them on March 5, before Russian troops arrived.
She said, “They were hit by artillery and burned alive.”
A resident of Irpin, who only gave his name as Andriy, said that the Russians had packed their equipment and fled on Tuesday. They shelled the town for nearly an hour, before Ukrainian soldiers retook control of it.
Andriy stated, “I don’t believe this is over.” They will be back.”