Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Defence Minister, has reported that Mariupol is under full Russian control, according to TASS.
“There is now peace on the territories of the LPR, DPR and Ukraine liberated from nationalists, including Mariupol, the largest industrial and transport hub on the Sea of Azov. The city is controlled by the Russian army," Shoigu said.
He also noted that the Russian army ‘are expanding their control’ over the territory of the DPR and LPR, self-proclaimed pro-Putin breakaway states.
Shoigu first reported capturing Mariupol on 21 April. He said that “over 2,000 Ukrainian combatants are hiding inside the Azovstal steelworks, three or four days are required to capture the area’. However, Putin responded that taking the area by storm is ‘impractical’.
The Russian Defence Ministry reported evacuating 126 civilians from the steelworks in recent days. Vadym Boychenko, the city’s mayor, stated that more than 200 civilians are still in the area.
The Russian army and the DPR militia have started an assault at the Azovstal steel plant yesterday, accusing the Ukrainian Army of ceasefire violation.
