EU Leaders Plan Kiev Visit as War Rages

KIEV, Ukraine (Dispatches) —Civilians in 2,000 cars fled Mariupol along a humanitarian corridor in what was believed to be the biggest evacuation yet from the besieged seaport.
On the diplomatic front, another round of talks began between Russia and Ukraine via video, and the leaders of three European Union countries — including Poland, a NATO member on Ukraine’s doorstep — planned a visit to the embattled capital in a bold show of support.
With the number of people driven from the country by war eclipsing 3 million, large explosions thundered across Kiev before dawn from what Ukrainian authorities said were artillery strikes, as Russia’s assault on the capital appeared to become more systematic and edged closer to the city center.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said barrages hit four multi-story buildings in the city and killed dozens of people. The shelling ignited a huge fire in a 15-story apartment building and spurred a frantic rescue effort.
The strikes, carried out of the 20th day of the conflict, targeted a western district of Kiev, disrupting a relative calm that returned after an initial advance by Moscow’s forces was stopped in the early days of the war.
The leaders of Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia set out for Kiev by train despite the security risks, in a visit EU officials said was not sanctioned by other members of the 27-nation bloc.
“The aim of the visit is to express the European Union’s unequivocal support for Ukraine and its freedom and independence,” Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said in a tweet. He was joined by fellow Prime Ministers Janez Jansa of Slovenia and Mateusz Morawiecki of Poland, as well as Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Poland’s de facto leader.
The UN said at least 636 civilians have been killed and 1,125 wounded in the conflict, with the true figure probably much higher.
The Ukrainian government said new aid and evacuation efforts would take place Tuesday along nine corridors around the country, including the Kiev region. Man past attempts failed amid continued fighting.
One of the most desperate situations is in Mariupol, the port city of 430,000 where local officials estimate a weekslong siege has killed more than 2,300 people and left residents desperate for food, water, heat and medicine.
The Mariupol city council reported that 2,000 civilian cars had managed to leave along a humanitarian corridor that runs for more than 260 kilometers (160 miles) west to the city of Zaporizhzhia.

The city council said another 2,000 cars were waiting to leave along the route. It was not immediately clear if the number of departed vehicles given Tuesday included 160 cars that left the day before.

As for the latest round of talks, Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said they were discussing a ceasefire and Russian troops’ withdrawal from Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow would press its demands that Ukraine drop its bid to join NATO, adopt a neutral status and “demilitarize.”

When Russia launched the war three weeks ago, fear of an imminent invasion gripped the Ukrainian capital, and residents slept in subway stations or crammed onto trains to flee. But as the Russian offensive bogged down, Kiev saw a relative lull. U.S. officials said Russian forces were about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the center of the city as of Monday.

Fighting has intensified on Kiev’s outskirts in recent days, and air raid sirens wailed inside the capital.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced a 35-hour curfew extending through Thursday morning.

In the country’s east, Russian forces launched more than 60 strikes overnight on Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, according to regional administration chief Oleh Sinehubov. The strikes hit the city’s historical center, including the main marketplace.

Sinehubov said fires were raging and rescuers pulled dozens of bodies of civilian from the ruins of destroyed apartment buildings.

Ukraine’s parliament voted to extend martial law for another month, until April 24. Under the measure, requested by Zelensky, men between 18 and 60 are barred from leaving the country so they can be called up to fight.

In Mykolaiv, a strategic southern city near the Black Sea where airstrikes killed nine people Sunday, residents braced for more attacks. Volunteers prepared food and sorted donated clothes at an abandoned naval yard that was turned into a support center for troops. Molotov cocktails were on hand to take on invaders.

kayhan.ir

EU Leaders Plan Kiev Visit as War Rages