Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared victory in Mariupol, after Russian forces laid siege to the southern Ukrainian city for nearly two months. Putin’s claim of “liberation” for Mariupol came as fighters and civilians remained holed up at a massive steel factory complex in the city. A marine commander of the remaining forces made a desperate appeal for international help with an evacuation.
Serhiy Volyna: “This is our appeal to the world. This could be the last appeal of our lives. We are probably facing our last days, if not hours. … All of us, Mariupol military battalion of soldiers, more than 500 wounded, and hundreds of civilians, including women and children, we plead to take us to safety on the territory of a third-party state.”
Russia had been considering storming the complex but for now has opted to blockade it. In eastern Ukraine, the governor of Luhansk says Russia now controls 80% of the region as fighting continues along a 300-mile frontline.