mariupol
Russian troops have besieged the southeastern port city since the early days of the conflict and largely reduced it to ruins.
Ukraine’s ability to bog Russia down has been on display at Mariupol, where a siege since the early days of the war has flattened much of the city but not yet resulted in a full victory.
“The Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced in a video address.
The relentless bombardment and street fighting in Mariupol have killed at least 21,000 people, by the Ukrainians' estimate.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
"We will fight absolutely to the end," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said of the devastated port city after Ukrainian fighters refused to surrender to Russia.
"Russia is deliberately trying to destroy everyone who is there in Mariupol,” the Ukrainian leader said in a virtual address.
Mayor Vadym Boychenko accused Russian forces of refusing to allow humanitarian convoys into the city in an attempt to conceal the carnage.
Ukrainian authorities have urged people living in the Donbas to evacuate immediately as the country braces for a renewed Russian offensive in the east.
The Ukrainian president lashed out at Western nations' "ping-pong about who and how should hand over jets" while Russian attacks trap and kill civilians.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said about 100,000 civilians were still in Mariupol with no access to food and water.