KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) – The Russian-occupied city of Sievierodonetsk in eastern Ukraine appeared to be on the verge of becoming another Mariupol on Monday, the mayor told The Associated Press Russian troops have entered, power and communications have been cut off and “the city has been completely ruined.”
Moscow seeks to capture the entire industrial region of Ukraine’s Donbass, and Sievierodonetsk is key to that. Mayor Oleksandr Striuk told the AP in a telephone interview that Ukrainian defenders are trying to oust the Russians from the city. Russian troops have advanced a few blocks toward the city center, he said.
“The death toll is rising every hour, but we cannot count the dead and wounded in the midst of the street fighting,” the mayor added. He said that between 12,000 and 13,000 civilians left in the city, which once had more than 100,000, took refuge in basements and bunkers to escape Russian bombing.
Russian forces stormed Sievierodonetsk after trying unsuccessfully to encircle him, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the situation “indescribably difficult.” Russian artillery bombardment has destroyed critical infrastructure and damaged 90% of buildings. The mayor has estimated that 1,500 civilians in the city have died since the war began, due to Russian attacks as well as a lack of medicine or treatment.
Sievierodonetsk, 143 kilometers (89 miles) south of the Russian border, has become the epicenter of the Donbas fighting in recent days. Mariupol is the city of the Sea of Azov that spent almost three months under Russian siege before the last Ukrainian fighters surrendered.
The Ukrainian army said Russian forces were strengthening their positions on the northeast and southeastern outskirts of Sievierodonetsk and bringing additional equipment and ammunition to pressure their offensive.
Luhansk Regional Governor Serhiy Haidai said the Russians are also pushing for nearby Lysychansk. He said two civilians were killed and five others wounded in the latest Russian bombing during the war.
Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk cover the strategically important Siverskiy Donetsk River. They are the last major Ukrainian-controlled areas in Luhansk, which forms the Donbas along with the adjacent Donetsk region.
The Institute for War Study, a Washington-based think tank, questioned the Kremlin’s strategy of putting together a major military effort to take Sieverodonetsk, saying it was costly for Russia and would bring few benefits. .
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told French television TF1 on Sunday that “Moscow’s unconditional priority is the liberation of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions,” and added that Russia considers them “independent states.” . He also suggested that other regions of Ukraine should be able to establish close ties with Russia.
The Ukrainian army reported heavy fighting around Donetsk, the regional capital, as well as Lyman in the north, a small town that serves as a key railway hub in the region. “The enemy is strengthening its units,” said the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff. “He’s trying to get his foot in the door.”
Authorities in a Russian-backed separatist region say at least five civilians were killed in the latest Ukrainian bombing of the city of Donetsk, including a 13-year-old boy.
Zelenskyy will address European Union leaders on Monday in a new show of solidarity with Ukraine amid divisions over whether to target Russian oil in a new round of sanctions. He has repeatedly demanded that the EU focus on Russia’s lucrative energy sector and deprive Moscow of billions of dollars every day in supply payments.
Zelenskyy visited soldiers on Sunday in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, where Ukrainian fighters pushed back Russian forces from nearby positions several weeks ago. Russia has continued to bomb the northeastern city, and the blasts could be heard shortly after Zelenskyy’s visit. Bombings and airstrikes have destroyed more than 2,000 apartment buildings since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.
In the wider Kharkiv region, Russian troops still held about a third of the territory, Zelenskyy said.
Russian pressure also continued south on Monday. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman General Igor Konashenkov said an artillery attack on the southern Mykolaiv port shipyard had destroyed Ukrainian armored vehicles parked on its territory.
In the Kherson region, Russia’s deputy head of the regional administration, Kirill Stremousov, told the Russian state news agency Tass that the grain from last year’s harvest is being delivered to Russian buyers, adding that “obviously there is a lot of grain here.” by preventing Ukraine from exporting its harvest.
On Sunday in Mariupol, an aide to its Ukrainian mayor alleged that after Russian forces gained full control of the city, they piled the bodies of dead people inside a supermarket. Petro Andryushchenko posted a photo on the Telegram messaging app showing bodies stacked next to closed supermarket counters. It was not possible to verify his claim immediately.
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Yuras Karmanau reported from Lviv. PA journalists from around the world contributed to this report.
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