A woman rides a bicycle from behind a lit bus after fighting on the outskirts of Mariupol, Ukraine, in the territory controlled by the separatist government of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Tuesday, March 29, 2022.
Highlight
- The Russian army surrounded Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.
- Russia said it would gradually withdraw from Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and the city of Chernihiv.
- Ukrainian officials said Russian shelling affected homes, shops, libraries and other civilian infrastructure.
Regional leaders said on Wednesday that Russian forces surrounded the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and surrounding areas of another city overnight, hours after Moscow promised to reduce military operations in those locations. The shelling further tempered optimism about any progress in talks aimed at ending punitive warfare.
Russia said it would gradually withdraw from Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and the city of Chernihiv after the latest round of talks between the two countries in Istanbul, Turkey. Russia did not say exactly what it planned to do differently, and while the promise initially raised hopes that a path toward peace was on the way, Ukraine’s president and others cautioned that the remarks It can only be a show.
Ukrainian officials said Russian shelling affected homes, shops, libraries and other “civilian infrastructure” in the northern city of Chernihiv and on the outskirts of the capital Kyiv.
The barrage came as Britain’s Defense Ministry warned that heavy losses had forced some Russian units to return to Belarus and Russia would make up for any shortfalls in ground maneuvers by using massive artillery and missile strikes. .
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military said Russian troops were intensifying their attacks around the eastern city of Izium and the eastern Donetsk region, after redeploying some units from other regions.
Meanwhile, Moscow reacted calmly to Kyiv’s proposed framework for a peace deal, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying it was a “positive factor” that Ukraine submitted its written proposals but saw no success.
The United Nations said the number of refugees fleeing the country has now exceeded 4 million, while European industrial powerhouse Germany has issued a warning over its natural gas supply that Russia could cut deliveries unless it Payment is not made in rubles.
Poland announced steps to end all Russian oil imports by the end of 2022.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday reacted with skepticism to Russia’s announcement amid talks in Istanbul that it would reduce military activity near the capital and
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