Putin orders total blockade of Mariupol steelworks ‘so that a fly can’t get through’

Russian President, Vladimir Putin has ordered his forces not to storm the last remaining Ukrainian stronghold in the besieged city of Mariupol, after his defence minister admitted that the Russian army was still fighting thousands of Ukrainian troops there.

Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 over alleged plans by the latter to join the United States-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), as well as refusal to recognise two Russian-speaking enclaves of Donbas and Luhansk, in the eastern region of the country

Putin described a plan to storm the Azovstal steelworks ‘impractical’ and called instead for Russian troops to blockade the area ‘so that a fly can’t get through’.

The declaration came during a meeting at the Kremlin, where the Russian defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, presented a report to Putin about the closely watched battle for the Ukrainian port city and claimed that the city had been ‘liberated,’ although fighting was ongoing.

He said it would take several more days for the Russians to defeat the Ukrainians fighting at the steelworks, a sprawling mass of tunnels and workshops spread over four square miles in the south-east of the city.

The meeting appeared to be orchestrated in order for the Russians to step back from the assault on the steelworks, which has been stymied by a fierce Ukrainian resistance and the difficulties of operating in the industrial area.

Leaving the plant in Ukrainian hands robs the Russians of the ability to declare complete victory in Mariupol. The city’s capture has strategic and symbolic importance.

However, reacting to the claims of control of Mariupol by Russian forces, United States President, Joe Biden, has said it was “questionable” whether his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, controls the besieged port city.

 Biden said: “It’s questionable whether he does control Mariupol. There is no evidence yet that Mariupol is completely fallen.”

Biden’s comments come after Putin claimed victory in Mariupol earlier Thursday, declaring the city “liberated” after nearly two months of siege, despite leaving hundreds of defenders still holed up inside a giant steel works.

The US leader called on Putin to allow humanitarian aid into Ukraine to allow those trapped inside the Azovstal steel plant to be able to get out.

The battle of Kyiv was a “historic victory” for the Ukrainians, Biden said, a “victory for freedom won by the Ukrainian people with unprecedented assistance” by the US and its allies.

Biden said: “Now we have to accelerate that assistance package to help prepare Ukraine for Russia’s offensive that is going to be more limited in terms of geography, but not in terms of brutality.”

The US and its allies are “moving as fast as possible” to provide weapons to Ukrainian forces, Biden said, announcing another $800 million in military assistance.

The US will also ban Russian-affiliated ships from American ports, which he described as “another critical step” to “deny Russia the benefits of the international economic system that they so enjoyed in the past”.

The US president, Joe Biden, has also announced an additional $800m (£612m) in military aid for Ukraine.

The new package will include heavy artillery weapons, dozens of Howitzers, 144,000 rounds of ammunition and tactical drones, Biden said as he delivered an update on US efforts related to the Russian invasion.

Biden said: “We’re in a critical window of time now where (Russian forces are) going to set the stage for the next phase of this war.

“The United States and our partners and allies are moving as fast as possible to continue to provide Ukraine with the equipment it needs, its forces need, to defend its nation.”

It comes just a week after the US announced a previous $800m to support Ukraine, which included artillery systems, artillery rounds, armoured personnel carriers and unmanned coastal defence boats.

Meanwhile Spain has sent a new batch of 200 tonnes of military equipment to Ukraine, including heavy transport vehicles and ammunition, the country’s prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, said during a visit to Kyiv, Thursday.

Speaking at a joint news conference with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, Sanchez said: “This is the largest shipment made until now, more than doubling what we have sent so far.”

A Spanish navy ship loaded with the equipment departed a port in Spain on Thursday bound for Poland, from where the cargo will be transported to Ukraine, he said.

The ship carries 30 trucks, several special heavy transport vehicles, and 10 small vehicles loaded with the military material that will be transferred to Ukraine.

Sanchez said Spain will also ask the International Criminal Court to investigate alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine and that it plans to send war crimes investigators there.

During the same briefing, his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, said her country would increase its contribution of weapons to Ukraine by 600m Danish crowns (£67m).