April 10, 2022
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov announced on Sunday, that the Russian armed forces have taken full control of the city of Zaphozhzia and announced that Ukranian resistance had subsided.
The news follows weeks of heavy fighting for control of the city, being the last major Ukranian held city in Eastern Europe.
On March 18, the Mayor of the city announced that Russian and Ukranian troops had engaged in battle south of the city and that all remaining civilians should evacuate. Since then, according to an Ukranian estimate, some 800 civilians have been killed as fighting raged on on every street.
Lavrov declared that: “Ukranian resistance to our operation has ended, and the Russian military now control Ukraine.” He also reiterated that civilians have nothing to fear regarding the Russian ocupation.
The Ukranian military has not issued a statement on the battle, last saying yesterday that they had inflicted heavy casualities on the Russians.
Ukranian forcea now seem depleted, after the leghty battle and siege of Kyiv ended last Saturday in Russian control of the city. With the bulk of the remaining Ukranian killed or captured in Kyiv or still trapped behind enemy lines. It’s unclear whether the depleted Ukranian forces will continue a conventional fight for Western Ukraine.
As of Sunday, 19,230 Ukranians had died or been injured, and some 5,200 captured, according to U.S. estimates, with Russians suffering similar casualities.