Ukraine has rejected Russia’s offer to hand over the port city
Ukraine has rejected Russia’s ultimatum to allow people to leave the besieged city of Mariupol in case of surrender.
Under Russia’s proposal, civilians would be allowed to leave if city guards kept their weapons.
However, Ukraine has denied the allegations, saying there is no question of surrendering to a strategic port city.
It is estimated that some 300,000 people are trapped there, running out of stock and blocking aid.
For weeks, the population has endured the bombing of Russia without electricity or running water.
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Details of Russia’s proposal were released Sunday by General Mikhail Mizinacev, who said Monday morning was until 5:00 a.m. Moscow time to meet Ukrainian conditions.
According to the plan, Russian troops will open a safe corridor from Mariupol from 10:00 Moscow time (07:00 GMT), mainly to disarm Ukrainian troops and “foreign mercenaries” to leave the city.
Two hours later, Russian forces announced that they would allow humanitarian escorts, including food, medicine and other goods, to enter the city safely after the roads were deactivated.
Russia’s general, Mizinshev, acknowledged that there was a “terrible humanitarian catastrophe” – and said the proposal would allow civilians to flee safely to the east or west.
Responding to the proposal, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk said that Ukraine will not stop protecting Mariupol.
“It’s not about giving up, about giving up,” he said.
Earlier on Sunday, Mariupol Mayor’s adviser Pyotr Andrushenko promised that city guards would fight.
“We will fight to the last,” he said.
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He said in an interview with BBC News Hour that Moscow’s humanitarian promises were “unbelievable” and that Mariupol officials had repeatedly denied the allegations in recent days, saying that Russian forces were forcibly deporting some of its people to Russia.
“When they [Russian forces] talk about humanitarian corridors, what are they actually doing? They’re really making our people move to Russia,” Andrushenko said.
The BBC has not been able to investigate the allegations.
Mariupol is an important strategic target for Russia and has seen the deadliest fighting in the attack.
In recent weeks, Russian troops have besieged the city, keeping its inhabitants without access to electricity, water or gas.
Contacts with the civilian population are limited, but food and medical supplies appear to be running out and Russia has blocked access to all humanitarian aid.
Since the beginning of the attack, the port city has experienced the most intense fighting in all of Ukraine, and Russian forces have still failed to capture the city from its defenders.
About 90% of the city’s buildings have been damaged or destroyed in the attacks since the fighting began three weeks ago, and authorities say at least 2,500 people have died, although the actual number could be higher.
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Following the destruction of a theater that housed more than 1,000 people last week, Mariupol authorities said on Sunday that an art school with 400 people had also been attacked.
Previous attempts to evacuate civilians in Mariupol have been blocked by Russian fire, although local authorities say thousands of people have been able to flee in private vehicles.
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister said on Sunday that 3,985 people had fled Mariupol to Zaporozhye, adding that on Monday the government planned to send about 50 buses to evacuate even more from the city.
President Volodymyr Zelensky called the blockade of Russia a “war crime”.
“It’s a completely deliberate strategy,” he said. “They [Russian forces] have a clear mandate to do their utmost to make an ‘argument’ for the Ukrainians to cooperate with the occupiers of the humanitarian disaster in Ukrainian cities.”
The port city ‘s location on the Azov coast has made it a strategic goal for Russia, as it will help establish a land corridor between Donetsk and the Russian – backed separatist – controlled eastern part of Luhansk.
Ukraine has rejected Russia’s offer to hand over the port city
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(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News East India staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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