Great concern over situation in Mariupol Ukraine fears Russian advance in Kiev
03/28/2022, 11:48 am
Ukraine fears Russian troops could breach defenses around Kiev. There are growing reports that defenders are doing particularly well there at the moment. Meanwhile, little is happening militarily in many regions. Things are bad in Mariupol.
According to Ukrainian sources, Russian troops want to break through the defenses around Kiev and advance towards the capital. In the northwest and east, the Ukrainian army is repelling attempts by Russian soldiers to take control of key roads and settlements, the Ukrainian general staff said Monday morning. Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry has published images of armored vehicles leaving the city of Zalissia, about 40 kilometers from Kiev, which are said to be traveling along the E95 highway. Information provided by both sides cannot be independently verified.
In fact, the fears of the Ukrainian armed forces do not correspond to recent developments. The Ukrainian and British defense ministries initially reported that Russian troops were at a standstill and in recent days have increasingly spoken of successful counter-offensives by the Ukrainian armed forces. According to this, the city of Makariw, west of Kiev, had already been recaptured days ago. The villages of Bucha and Irpin are also considered contested again. On March 25, the Ukrainian side went so far as to say that 80% of Irpin was again under Ukrainian control. There have also been recent successes east of the capital: the village of Lukyanivka has been back in Ukrainian hands since late last week, he said.
Currently, little is happening on other fronts. In the town of Sumy, which has been disputed since the beginning of the invasion, Russian troops are still finding it difficult to secure supplies of material and troops. Here, too, there are indications that Russian troops could regroup and therefore withdraw tactically at times. It is unclear whether this has anything to do with Russia’s alleged new focus on “liberating Donbass”. However, it is said that there is also no real progress for Russian forces in the east. The Ukrainian armed forces are strongly resisting, especially around the city of Izyum. According to many military experts, the Russian military wanted to advance south from there to cut off Ukrainian troops in eastern Ukraine from the country’s west. Apparently this is not possible at the moment. A video is appearing on Twitter in which a burning wreckage can be seen. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry says it was a Russian warplane that was shot down in the Izyum region on Thursday.
Will defenders be separated in Mariupol?
Russian troops will likely succeed in the city of Mariupol. There, they are supported by numerous fighters from Chechnya and breakaway areas. They keep moving towards the city center. There are videos of Russian fighters in front of the town hall in the Kalmiuskyi district. Experts see the danger that Ukrainian defenders in Mariupol could be split into two or more smaller groups and isolated from each other. This would make it much easier for attackers to advance. The bombing of the city, however, continues. There are still many civilians in the heavily bombed port city. The establishment of humanitarian corridors has failed several times. The city has been without running water, electricity, heating and food for weeks.
In the morning, the Ukrainian general staff also reported fighting taking place in other parts of the country, including in the southern regions of Mykolaiv and Zaporizhia. Above all, Mykolayiv is of central importance. It’s the last big city on the way to Odessa. The port city in southwest Ukraine is considered the “gateway to Kiev”. From there, the Russian army could advance north towards the capital without much resistance, experts say. So far, the Ukrainians have not only successfully defended Mykolayiv, but also launched attacks on the city of Cherson, which has long been under Russian control.