KYIV, April 16 (Reuters) – Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated about 2,500 to three,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed in seven weeks of battle with Russia and about 10,000 have been injured.
There was no rely of civilian casualties, he informed CNN on Friday.
He stated 19,000 to twenty,000 Russian troopers had been killed within the battle, now in its eighth week. Moscow stated final month that 1,351 Russian troopers had been killed and three,825 wounded.
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Reuters couldn’t independently confirm both aspect’s numbers.
Combating was intense in Mariupol as Ukraine stated it was making an attempt to interrupt Russia’s siege of the southeastern port metropolis. Dwelling to 400,000 folks earlier than Russia’s invasion, Mariupol has been decreased to rubble. 1000’s of civilians have died and tens of hundreds stay trapped. learn extra
“The state of affairs in Mariupol is troublesome and laborious. Combating is occurring proper now. The Russian military is continually calling on further models to storm the town,” defence ministry spokesperson Oleksandr Motuzyanyk informed a briefing. He stated the Russians haven’t utterly captured it.
Russia stated it struck what it described as a manufacturing facility on the outskirts of the capital Kyiv that made and repaired anti-ship missiles, after the sinking on Thursday of the Moskva, the flagship of Moscow’s Black Sea fleet.
Ukraine stated one among its missiles had prompted the Moskva to sink, a robust image of its resistance to a better-armed foe. Moscow stated the ship sank whereas being towed in stormy seas after a hearth attributable to an explosion of ammunition and that greater than 500 sailors have been evacuated.
The US believes the Moskva was hit by two Ukrainian missiles and that there have been Russian casualties, though numbers have been unclear, a senior U.S. official stated.
Not one of the assessments might be independently verified.
‘SIGNIFICANT’ VICTORIES
Zelenskiy stated the army state of affairs within the south and east was “nonetheless very troublesome,” whereas praising the work of his armed forces.
“The successes of our army on the battlefield are actually important, traditionally important. However they’re nonetheless not sufficient to scrub our land of the occupiers. We are going to beat them some extra,” he stated in a late-night video tackle, calling once more for allies to ship heavier weapons and for a world embargo on Russian oil.
Zelenskiy has appealed to U.S. President Joe Biden for the US to designate Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism,” becoming a member of North Korea, Cuba, Iran and Syria, the Washington Put up reported, citing folks accustomed to their dialog. learn extra
A White Home spokesperson responded by saying, “We are going to proceed to contemplate all choices to extend the strain on Putin.”
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and high finance officers will attend Worldwide Financial Fund and World Financial institution conferences in Washington subsequent week, sources informed Reuters.
Will probably be the primary probability for key Ukrainian officers to satisfy in particular person with monetary officers from superior economies since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. learn extra
HOLDING OUT IN MARIUPOL
If Moscow captures Mariupol, it will be the primary massive metropolis to fall.
Russia’s defence ministry stated it had captured the town’s Illich metal works. The report couldn’t be confirmed. Ukrainian defenders are primarily believed to be holding out in Azovstal, one other enormous metal works. learn extra
Each crops are owned by Metinvest, the empire of Ukraine’s richest businessman and spine of Ukraine’s industrial east – which informed Reuters on Friday it will by no means let its enterprises function beneath Russian occupation. learn extra
Moscow has used its naval energy to blockade Ukrainian ports and threaten a possible amphibious touchdown alongside the coast. With out the Moskva, the biggest warship sunk throughout battle since Argentina’s Basic Belgrano within the 1982 Falklands battle, its skill to menace Ukraine from the ocean might be crippled.
Russia initially described its goals in Ukraine as “a particular army operation” to disarm its neighbour and defeat nationalists there.
After its invasion power was pushed from the outskirts of Kyiv this month, Moscow has stated its essential battle goal is to seize the Donbas, the jap area partly held by Russian-backed separatists since 2014.
Kyiv and its Western allies say these are bogus justifications for an unprovoked battle of aggression that has pushed 1 / 4 of Ukraine’s 44 million folks from their houses and led to the deaths of hundreds.
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Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Raju Gopalakrishnan; Enhancing by William Mallard
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