Ukraine

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu says a total of some 6,500 Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.   This information has not been independently verified. "In the past five days, 126 soldiers of the armed forces of Ukraine have surrendered, their total number is 6489," Shoigu said on Tuesday morning, speaking about the interim results of the war. The Russian army invaded Ukraine on February 24. Among the Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered are defenders of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol. Russian authorities previously stated that more than 2400 soldiers were involved.

The Ukrainian army has enough clout to withstand Russian attacks in the eastern city of Severodonetsk, the city's mayor says.   According to him, there is heavy fighting in the streets, but neither side appears to have any intention of withdrawing. According to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, Russia is not sparing any soldiers or equipment in the siege of the city. They are using all available resources to gain control of the city, the ministry said. The governor of the Luhansk region said on Monday that the Russians were being pushed back and that the city has been divided in two. Previously, the Russians still occupied 70 percent of Severodonetsk.

The Kremlin denies that Russian troops are storming the Azovstal factory in Mariupol, which Ukrainian sources previously reported.   The steel mill is the last Ukrainian stronghold of resistance in the southern Ukrainian city. "The order to call off the attack was given publicly," a Kremlin spokesman said. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on April 21 that he ordered the siege of the steel plant and a halt to the attack. According to the mayor of Mariupol, about 200 civilians are still trapped in the underground facilities of Azovstal. There are also reportedly several thousand Ukrainian soldiers there. The first civilians were evacuated last weekend.

A meeting between the leaders of Ukraine and Russia still seems out of sight. Ukrainian presidential adviser Michailo Podoljak, chief negotiator at the peace talks, says the countries have not yet reached an agreement. In Kyiv, there has been a desire to enter into direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin for some time. Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky called on Saturday to meet with Putin to "end the war". Turkey is trying to arrange this meeting as a mediator. Zelensky also wanted to meet Putin before the Russian invasion, but his efforts were in vain. The Russian president demanded that Zelensky resolve the conflict with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. Despite pressure from Russia, Ukrainian authorities refused to engage in talks with the militias wi...

Near the port city of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine, besieged by Russian troops, satellite images indicate a possible mass grave, according to several media.   The American satellite company Maxar released images showing several excavated graves in the suburb of Manhuch, west of Mariupol. Local authorities say thousands of civilians are buried there. Ukrainian President Volodomir Zelensky previously spoke of tens of thousands of deaths in the port city, which has been under siege for weeks. The Ukrainian figures could not be independently verified. Zelensky has not yet publicly commented on the suspected mass grave. Instead, the information comes from Mariupol City Council and Mayor Vadym Boichenko. They speak of graves for "9,000 bodies" but are no longer on site. A satellite ...