The battle for the strategic "fortress" is coming to an end, and the prelude to a bigger war may be kicked off, and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine ushered in a "key node"
[Global Times correspondent in Russia Sui Xin, Global Times correspondent Liu Yupeng Xin Bin] This past weekend, the biggest focus of the situation in Russia and Ukraine is undoubtedly the situation of Mariupol.
Since Russia launched a special military operation, the battle and contention between Russia and Ukraine around this strategic port city in southeastern Ukraine has been at a stalemate.
By the 16th, the Russian army had almost completely controlled the city, leaving only the remnants of the Ukrainian army stationed at the Azov Steel Plant. The Russian side issued an ultimatum to it, but it was ignored.
Western media said on the 17th that this strategic port is "on the verge of collapse".
The battle of Mariupol is considered to be of great significance. By occupying the place, Russia will open up a land passage connecting the Udong region and Crimea, and may trigger a chain reaction on other fronts.
Moreover, Mariupol will be the first major Ukrainian city to fall into the hands of the Russian army since the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
Meanwhile, the Russian targeted bombing of Kyiv resumed, disrupting the city's brief calm.
Russia's "Liberty Media" website said on the 17th that both Ukrainian government officials and Western intelligence agencies believe that the "Donbas Battle" that will determine the outcome of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict is about to begin.
Washington is trying to persuade allies to send more ammunition to Kyiv amid fears that Ukraine's ammunition is rapidly running out of new Russian offensives.
EU leaders called on EU countries on the 17th to quickly provide equipment to Ukraine without distinguishing between the light and heavy types of weapons.
"Stalingrad in Ukraine"?
"The ultimatum against Mariupol was rejected, and Russia threatened to 'eliminate' the resisters." According to CNN, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed on the 17th that it had called for the ultimatum of the besieged Ukrainian army to surrender. ignored.
"If there is further resistance, they will all be eliminated," the Russian side said.
According to the report of the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Russian army and the Donetsk militia completely liberated the Ilyich Steel Plant in Mariupol on the 15th, and completed the "Azov battalion" and foreign employment in the urban area of Mariupol on the 16th. On the 17th, a complete siege and blockade of the Azov Steel Plant was achieved, and the military personnel trapped in the plant area were recruited and surrendered.
According to reports, Ukrainian armed men surrounded by the Azov steel plant in Mariupol are in a desperate situation, with little food and water.
Radio communications intercepted by the Russian side show that the Ukrainian authorities forbade the defenders from negotiating the issue of surrender and demanded that "anyone who wants to lay down their weapons be killed on the spot."
The head of the Russian National Defense Command Center, General Miztsev, said that on the 16th, "the frequency of radio calls of the besieged nationalist group militants and foreign mercenaries has increased dramatically", and 367 radio messages have been intercepted in the past day alone.
According to Russian information on the 17th, the Ukrainian government recruited a total of 6,824 "foreign mercenaries" from 63 countries, of which 1,717 were from Poland and about 1,500 were from the United States, Canada and Romania.
During the fighting, the Russian army eliminated 1,035 foreign mercenaries, and another 912 mercenaries refused to take part in the hostilities and fled the country.
Mariupol, located on the north coast of the Sea of Azov, is a fortress of the Ukrainian army. The Russian army has been working hard for more than a month to take this port city.
Previously, Donetsk armed leaders stated that the Azov Steel Plant was built in the Soviet era, with a complex structure, a huge and well-developed underground transportation network, and some areas can also resist nuclear strikes.
Some analysts say that if Mariupol is occupied, Russia will completely control more than 80% of Ukraine's Black Sea coastline, thereby cutting off Ukraine's maritime trade.
"Voice of America" believes that occupying the city will allow Moscow to open up a land passage between the Udong region and the Crimean peninsula.
Moreover, Mariupol, razed to the ground by artillery fire, will become the first major city to be conquered and occupied by Russian forces.
"If Mariupol falls, it will be Russia's biggest trophy so far in this war." Australia's "Sydney Morning Herald" wrote on the 17th.
Some Russian media published an article saying that the Kyiv authorities regard Mariupol as "Ukraine's Stalingrad" and try to drag the Russian army there for a long time, thus making it a turning point in the entire war.
The site is also important because, if it falls, other Ukrainian fronts may crumble.
The US "Capitol Hill" said on the 17th that the occupation of Mariupol may be part of a new round of Russian offensive.
Ukrainian President Zelensky admitted on the 16th that Mariupol's situation is very difficult.
He accused Russia of trying to kill everyone there.
He also said that Ukraine will not make deals with its territory and people, and that if the defenders are wiped out, all negotiations will be terminated.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmegar said on the 17th that Mariupol "has not fallen" and that the surrounded troops will "fight to the end".
Kyiv is no longer calm
Russian troops resumed airstrikes on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv as the fighting in Mariupol entered its final hour, ending the city's relative calm since Russian troops withdrew from the area in late March.
According to the battle report released by the Russian Ministry of Defense on the 17th, in the past day and night, the Russian army continued to strike a number of Ukrainian military targets, including using high-precision missiles to destroy a weapons and ammunition manufacturing plant in Kyiv Oblast.
On the 16th, the Russian army destroyed an armored vehicle factory in Kyiv.
Earlier, the Russian army used sea-based long-range missiles to attack a factory near Kyiv International Airport that produces "Neptune" missiles.
Both Ukraine and the United States said the guided-missile cruiser Moskva was destroyed by two Neptune missiles.
The video footage released by the Russian side on the 16th shows that the commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Yevmenov, met with the crew of the cruiser "Moscow" in Sevastopol.
This is the first official release of the crew since the ship sank.
Yevmenov said that naval officers, warrant officers and contract soldiers will continue to serve in the navy, and conscripts will retire normally.
"The main battleship was sunk and angered, and the Russian army stepped up its air strikes and artillery bombardment on Ukrainian cities such as Kyiv." "Voice of America" said on the 16th that the Ukrainian military said that the Russian military plane that took off from Belarus was also heading for Lviv, which is close to Poland. area to launch missiles.
Moscow said Russian forces had attacked a factory for repairing military vehicles in the southern Ukrainian city of Nikolayev.
The Ukrainian military and local officials said that the Russian military had carried out intensive air strikes in many areas in the three states of Kharkiv, Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.
Also on the 16th, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that a Ukrainian transport plane carrying a large number of Western weapons was shot down near Odessa.
According to media reports, Moscow issued a diplomatic note a few days ago, warning the United States and NATO not to send "the most sensitive" weapons to Kyiv, saying that it may cause "unthinkable consequences".
But the U.S. State Department said "nothing could stop" it from sending weapons to Kyiv.
According to the NBC report, Pentagon officials said that Ukraine and Russia are currently fighting fiercely in eastern and southern Ukraine, and the Ukrainian army fires thousands of artillery shells every day.
With the rapid depletion of the Ukrainian army's ammunition, the Russian army may soon launch a new offensive, and it is estimated that it will adopt a "double siege" tactic and attack the Ukrainian army in Donbas and other border areas at the same time.
US President Biden announced a few days ago that he would deliver 40,000 rounds of artillery shells to Ukraine, but it was only enough for more than a week.
U.S. officials are now trying to persuade allies to provide Ukraine with more ammunition.
According to White House officials, on the 16th, the latest batch of military supplies worth $800 million provided by the United States to Ukraine "has begun to arrive."
European Commission President von der Leyen on the 17th called on EU countries to quickly provide Ukraine with weapons and equipment, no longer distinguish between light and heavy types.
Is this war going to end at the end of the year?
On the 17th local time, Zelensky said in an interview with online media that Ukraine is ready to negotiate with Russia on Ukraine's non-joining of NATO and the status of Crimea, but only if Russia stops military operations and its armed forces are removed from Ukraine. Territorial withdrawal.
A day earlier, Zelensky said that the outcome of the negotiations could lead to the signing of two documents: one on Ukraine's security guarantees, and the other on a Ukraine-Russia direct agreement.
No country has officially expressed its willingness to become a security guarantor, and he hopes to make concrete progress in the next 7-10 days.
Russia's State Duma (lower house of parliament) chairman Volodin said the Ukrainian president's remarks on the Russia-Ukraine negotiations were a tactic to delay the military, and the intention was to buy time for NATO to seek military assistance.
Volodin said that what Zelensky has to do is to quickly withdraw troops from the Donbas region and not join the alliance.
Bloomberg reported on the 17th that Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich went to Kyiv, Ukraine, to try to restart stalled peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Abramovich, who is close to Putin, met with Ukrainian negotiators, the people said.
Abramovich had served as an unofficial mediator between Russia and Ukraine, but his spokesman denied he was in Kyiv and declined to comment further.
Zelensky said that in Russia, Abramovich represented a side that supported a diplomatic solution and an end to the war, but "no one can guarantee that this is not a game."
"The U.S. State Department acknowledges that the Ukrainian war is 'likely' to continue until the end of the year." According to CNN, two European officials said recently that U.S. Secretary of State Blinken told European allies that Washington expected the Russian-Ukrainian war to continue for at least another eight months.
US State Department spokesman Price said on the 15th: "This is very likely." In addition, the US President's national security adviser Sullivan said that the war may be protracted, lasting "months or even longer."
Some lawmakers quietly drew comparisons to the three-year-old Korean War.