of victory? potentially, for example, in the battle for mariupol after russia s humiliation around the capital of ukraine, kyiv. mariupol is a fate that he is so committed to, if the ukrainians were to break through, with what seems to be impossible for the moment, break through and relieve the forces inside, that would be a huge humiliation. that doesn t seem to be in the cards. if he continues to stall and not be able to take this final piece of ground held by these few ukrainian fighters that are left in there, that will be a humiliation for him. it is a humiliation to have not been able to take kyiv. they respun, that that was their intention. if he gets bogged down in donbas, that will be very hard to sell to the russian people. that they re not making gains. not getting the territory that
ground at any cost. reporter: but ukrainian forces in mariupol are making sure that erase iure is painful. this video shows the ukrainian azov battalion with forces throwing grenades at russian forces in the city. it s an act of resistance, but the outcome may be unchanged. already the human toll of this battle for mariupol has been appalling, with thousands, including many civilians, killed. but ukrainian officials say another russian offensive is now under way, posing another deadly threat to those trapped inside. we re joined by matthew chance. you see the kids living underground like that. can you talk about why taking for russians taking mariupol is so important? it s partly geographic, partly streak.
already the human toll of this battle for mariupol has been appalling with thousands, including many civilians, killed. but ukrainian officials say another russian offensive is now under way, posing another deadly threat to those trapped inside. matthew chance, cnn, new york. i m joined now from los angeles by a political science professor at ucla, author of the return: russia s journey from gosrbachev to medvedev. a major objective for russia in the south is to establish this land bridge from the crimea region to the donbas. can they do that without totally clearing the mariupol area of the ukrainian fighters? are those last ukrainian soldiers and defenders holed up in the steel plant essentially determining the course of this
yet to take total control. ukrainian forces are holed up in a sprawling iron and steel factory. hundreds of civilians are believed to have take cover there as well. the site is now being targeted by heavy russian bombardment. translator: right now in mariupol at the azov steel factory, hundreds of civilians are sheltering. among them are children of all ages, women, the elderly, and the families of mariupol defenders. they are sheltering in the basements and bunkers from the russian world. cnn s matthew chance has more on what civilians are facing in mariupol. a warning, some of the images in his report are disturbing. reporter: these are the kids ukrainian officials say are at ground zero in the battle for mariupol. this video, posted on government social media, but which cnn can t verify, shows dozens of children said to have been
the battle for the key port city of mariupol rages on with more heavy fighting being reported. a u.s. defense official says the city remains contested. drone footage shows the devastation left behind. we re also getting video of smoke coming from a steel factory. ukraine says hundreds of civilians are also sheltering inside. cnn s matthew chance has images of what people are facing. reporter: these are the kids that are at ground zero in the battle for mariupol. this video posted on government social media which cnn can t