(CNN) — The commander of the Azov Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Denis Prokopenko, issued a short video message from inside the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, saying that the military leadership had “given the order to preserve the life and health of the soldiers from the garrison and stop defending the city”.
The message implies that those remaining in Azovstal plan to leave the plant in the near future. Several hundred fighters are believed to remain inside the sprawling compound.
Azovstal was the last holdout of the otherwise Russian-occupied city of Mariupol and has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance under relentless Russian bombardment.
Prokopenko added: “Despite heavy fighting… and lack of supplies, we constantly stressed the three most important conditions for us: civilians, wounded and dead. Civilians were evacuated.
The seriously injured received the necessary assistance; were evacuated with more exchange and delivery [prevista] to territory controlled by Ukraine.”
The injured have been taken to a hospital in the Donetsk People’s Republic.
“As for the fallen heroes, the process is ongoing. But I hope that in the near future, the families and the whole of Ukraine will be able to bury their soldiers with honors.”
Some background: Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Friday that almost 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered at the Azovstal plant.
“The blockade of the Azovstal plant continues… The nationalists are actively surrendering to captivity. At the moment, 1,908 people have laid down their arms,” Shoigu said in remarks picked up by Russian state media.
CNN cannot independently verify these figures.
Donbas is “completely destroyed”, says Ukraine’s president
In the Chernihiv region, north of Kyiv, the village of Desna was hit by Russian missiles on Thursday, leaving many dead, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his late-night speech on Thursday. Desna is located 40 kilometers from the border with Belarus.
“The Russian attacks in the Chernihiv region, in particular the terrible blow in the Desna, there is an analysis of the rubble, many dead,” Zelensky said in his late-night speech on Thursday.
There are “constant attacks on the Odessa region, on the cities of central Ukraine, Donbas is completely destroyed, all this does not have and cannot have any military explanation for Russia,” he continued.
“This is a deliberate and criminal attempt to kill as many Ukrainians as possible,” he said.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to make progress in the liberation of the Kharkiv region, Zelensky said.
“In Donbas, the occupiers are trying to increase the pressure. There is hell, and it is not an exaggeration. The brutal and absolutely senseless shelling of Severodonetsk… There were 12 deaths and dozens of injuries in a single day,” he continued.
A Russian soldier walks through the rubble in eastern Mariupol on April 15. (Photo: Story Picture Agency/Shutterstock)
“The shelling and shelling of other cities, the air and missile attacks by the Russian army… all this is not just fighting during the war.”
“This is a deliberate and criminal attempt to kill as many Ukrainians as possible. Destroy as many houses, social facilities and businesses as possible. This is what will qualify the genocide of the Ukrainian people and for which the occupants will definitely be brought to justice.” justice,” he added.
“The first trial in Ukraine against a Russian war criminal has already started. And it will end with the full restoration of justice in the international court. I am sure of it. We will find and bring to justice all those who give and carry out criminal orders “, he concluded.
Chinese demand for Russian coal offsets Western sanctions
The Borodinsky open-pit coal mine, which produces 22 million tons a year, next to the town of Borodino, in the Rybinsk district of the Krasnoyarsk region, Russia, on April 19. (Photo: Alexander Manzyuk/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
China is buying record amounts of cheap Russian coal, even as Western nations hit Moscow with sanctions over the Ukraine invasion.
In April, the world’s second-largest economy not only bought more coal from Russia than ever before, but also scrapped import tariffs on all types of coal, a move analysts say will mainly benefit Russian suppliers.
China’s coal imports from Russia nearly doubled between March and April, reaching 4.42 million metric tons, according to Refinitiv trade data. Russia has overtaken Australia as China’s second largest supplier since last year and now accounts for 19% of its coal imports, up from 14% in March.
The rise of the coal trade favors both sides. Despite bold promises to tackle the climate crisis, China is now focused on pulling its economy out of the slump and needs coal to power power plants and make steel for infrastructure projects. Russia desperately needs new customers for its fossil fuels, as the West rejects them.
Russian forces block the evacuation of more than 1,000 cars to Zaporizhia, according to the regional administration
More than 1,000 cars carrying Ukrainians have been prevented from crossing into Ukrainian-controlled territory in Zaporizhia, according to the area’s regional military administration.
The administration said on Friday that cars full of people trying to evacuate were stuck at a Russian checkpoint in the town of Vasylivka.
“In Vasylivka, the occupiers have not allowed more than 1,000 cars to enter Ukrainian-controlled territory for the fourth day in a row,” the Telegram post said, adding that there are women and children in the cars, and most of them already they have no money for food and water.
Several cars managed to make their way this Thursday to the city of Zaporizhia, in southeastern Ukraine.
“Businessmen from Berdyansk are forced to buy products from Crimea, and it is necessary to sign up for an escort convoy. This registration helps local collaborators to collect information on who returns with the goods and who can later be charged the “tribute”. “” said the regional administration.
A video posted on Telegram by the Ukrainian government’s Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security shows a long line of cars on the shoulder of a highway.
Russia fires top brass who ‘were bad’ during early phases, British intelligence says
Russia sacked top brass deemed “low performers” during the initial stages of the Ukraine invasion, according to a UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) intelligence report on Thursday.
“Lieutenant General Serhiy Kisel, who commanded the elite 1st Guards Tank Army, was suspended for his failure to take Kharkiv. Vice Admiral Igor Ospipov, who commanded Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, was also likely suspended. after the sinking of the Moskva cruiser in April,” the Defense Ministry said on Twitter.
The chief of the Russian General Staff, Valeriy Gerasimov, “probably” remains in his post, but it is not “clear” if he retains the confidence of President Putin, the statement continues.
The British intelligence update also said a culture of cover-up and escape is “likely prevalent” within the Russian military and security establishment.
“Many officers involved in the invasion of Ukraine will likely be increasingly distracted by efforts to avoid personal blame for Russia’s operational mishaps,” the statement said.
“This will likely put further pressure on Russia’s centralized command and control model, as officers increasingly seek to defer key decisions to their superiors,” he added.