Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine admitted to fighting thousands of Ukrainians, including armed civilians, in the besieged city of Mariupol on Thursday.
The fighting is concentrated on the site of a large steel plant, Azovstal, and in the port, according to Eduard Basurin, representing separatist forces in Donetsk.
“We believe that there are around 3,000 or 3,500 (opposing soldiers) left, but we must also take into account the fact that among the inhabitants of Mariupol, some have taken up arms, and therefore the number may be much higher”, a- he said, according to several Russian state media.
The Russian military and its separatist allies have been besieging the city for weeks and are facing fierce Ukrainian resistance.
The humanitarian situation there is catastrophic, according to both sides, and the city is largely in ruins.
The capture of this port is strategic for Russia because it would allow it to make the connection between Crimea, annexed in 2014, and the region under separatist control and Russian territory.
Moscow has notably deployed the formidable units of the Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov there, without succeeding so far in taking this port city.