Putin applauds Mariupol’s “freedom.”
President Vladimir Putin celebrated Russia’s “liberation” of Mariupol on Thursday, after Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed him that Moscow was in charge of the Ukrainian port city aside from the massive Azovstal steel factory.
Taking full control of Mariupol on the Azov Sea may be a major strategic win for Russia, allowing it to link occupied Crimea to pro-Russian separatist territory in Japanese Ukraine.
During a televised meeting, Shoigu assured Putin, “Mariupol has been liberated.” “The remnant nationalist groups sought refuge in the Azovstal plant’s industrial zone.”
Around 2,000 Ukrainian forces, according to Shoigu, remained within the factory, where the final pocket of Ukrainian resistance was hiding in the facility’s network of underground tunnels.
Putin declared Mariupol’s “liberation” a “success” for Russian forces, but instructed Shoigu to cancel the planned invasion of the Azovstal industrial sector, calling it “impractical.”
“There’s no need to enter these dungeons or crawl around these industrial buildings underneath.” “Block off this industrial zone so that not even a fly can get out,” Putin declared.
Thousands of civilians are thought to have died in the city, which was besieged by Russian troops for over a month with little food, water, or electricity.
