Not only is the city of great strategic and economic importance, but Mariupol also represents the “core of the Russian narrative of denazification of Ukraine”, because there the Azov regiment “plays and plays an essential role in the defense of Mariupol”, he said. the colonel in the ORF program. The unit is accused of “recruiting from right-wing circles,” according to Sandtner.
On the political level, however, right-wing extremists hardly play a role in what is now pro-European Ukraine. The National Corps party did not have great successes in the 2019 parliamentary elections: it received a good two percent of the vote, failed at the five percent barrier and was not represented in parliament.
According to Ukraine’s chief negotiator Mykhailo Podoliak, it is difficult to say when peace talks with Russia could resume. “Of course, in the context of the Mariupol tragedy, the negotiation process has become even more complicated.” “Russia defiantly refuses any sign of humanity and humanity when it comes to certain humanitarian corridors. Especially when we talk about Mariupol.” No direct trading has taken place since March 29. Both sides are responsible for this.
According to information from European circles, the city on the Sea of Azov could fall in a few days. “I’m afraid it’s worse than in Bucha,” said a source. After taking Mariupol, President Vladimir Putin can declare the city “liberated” on May 9 – the day Russia is celebrating the surrender of Nazi Germany, he said. The Russian medium-term objective is likely to control the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in Donbass and establish a connection between Crimea and Donbass. This should take four to six months. The conflict can then lead to an impasse.
Meanwhile, fierce fighting is also taking place in other parts of Ukraine. In the southern Ukraine region of Zaporizhia, authorities are reporting heavy fighting around the small town of Polohy. “The men are holding the defensive line, but the enemy is attacking massively,” regional governor Olexander Staruch said.
The Ukrainian General Staff announced that in Donbass, the small town of Marjinka was once again under Kiev’s control. “In the direction of Donetsk, in the area of the city of Marjinka, the enemy suffered heavy losses as a result of a counterattack by our forces and retreated” – Ukrainian units regained control of the city, according to the situation report of the General Staff. There was no information on the status of the small town of Kreminna, not far from Sievjerodonetsk, into which Russian units were said to have penetrated the day before.