Ukraine rejects Russian calls to surrender devastated city of Mariupol
- Besieged port city suffered some of heaviest bombardments since Russia invaded Ukraine, in what some in EU say are war crimes
- The Kremlin gave the city an ultimatum late on Sunday, urging its defenders to surrender on Monday morning
Ukraine on Monday rejected Russian calls to surrender the port city of Mariupol, where residents are besieged with little food, water and power in a humanitarian crisis that is increasing pressure on European leaders to toughen sanctions on Moscow.
Ukraine’s government defiantly rejected Russia’s request for Ukrainian forces in Mariupol to lay down their arms in exchange for safe passage out of the city and humanitarian corridors to be opened from 10am Moscow time (0700 GMT) on Monday. It was unclear what action might follow the refusal to surrender.
“There can be no question of any surrender, laying down of arms,” the Ukrainska Pravda news portal cited Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk as saying. “We have already informed the Russian side about this.”
Mariupol has suffered some of the heaviest bombardments since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. Many of its 400,000 residents remain trapped as fighting rages on the streets around them.
Vereshchuk said over 7,000 people were evacuated from Ukrainian cities through humanitarian corridors on Sunday, more than half from Mariupol. She said the government planned to send nearly 50 buses there on Monday for further evacuations.
