but zelenskyy said putin would do much better to focus on the russian speakers in his own country who don t have freedom of expression, don t have freedom to dissent and oftentimes live in poverty. the maldoven foreign minister also summoned the russian ambassador yesterday to discuss these comments saying moldova is neutral country and its borders need to be protected by all countries including the russians who have long agreed to respect its borders. the battle for mariupol and those still trapped there, what s the latest? reporter: yeah, so, this is a city that has been under siege since the outset of the war. so you ve had people sheltering underground for almost two months now in many cases. there are still tens of thousands of people trapped. ukrainians refused to budge. they re holding out. their stationed at the steel plant there where local officials say there s also some 1,000 women and children
confession will stand up in court. coming up shortly as we begin a new hour. 10:00 in new york. top story at this hour russian forces making small advances along the front line in eastern ukraine as they gear up for a full scale offensive seeking control of that donbas region. and more. welcome brand-new hour starts right now. dana has a day off today. i m bill hemmer. how are you doing? sandra: great to be with you i m sandra smith. giancarlo what an amazing story. we ll follow up with him, right? cities in donbas are bracing for the next phase of this russian campaign. several areas there already coming under fire interfering with efforts to safely get civilians out. meanwhile, russia now claiming victory in the battle for mariupol. despite the thousands of resistance forces that remain in that city. what we will tell you this morning we assess mariupol is contested and hasn t been taken by the russians and there is
neil: thanks, my friend. to general jack keane on these fast moving developments. general, this battle for mariupol and the 2,000 soldiers draped in the facility, we re tolding hundreds more with them, they can t get out. i m just wondering what happens. yeah, the decision that the russians have made, they re going to continue to bomb the area. but they re they re no longer to going to assault the area. they ve been taking so many casualties in doing that. they have 12 tactical groups occupying mariupol. they re the units fighting the ukrainians. they ve had significant casualties so much so that it s doubtful they be able to be redeplayed in the donbas region for some time because of it. so the decision is no longer assault. too many casualties. nobody can get in with replies.
inside ukrainian territory, south of dnipro, if we are going to see the full humanitarian corridor demanded and requested by the deputy prime minister of ukraine, we will find out. they have said they are open to negotiations without preconditions but we have heard that before and it has failed to materialise. we can speak now to general sir richard barrons. he was formerly one of the british army s most senior commanders. good morning. starting from the premise that we cannot trust a word president putin says, what do you make of the news from moscow that he has ordered his troops not to storm this steel plant but to seal it off? i think we should recognise the battle for mariupol in a military sense was coming to a conclusion, the ukrainian defenders in the steelworks were going to be really difficult to defeat, at enormous cost to both sides. but that defence
block off this industrial area so that even a fly cannot escape. once again, invite all those who have not yet laid down their arms to do so. the russian side guarantees their lives and their dignified treatment. of course, taking control of such an important centre in the south as mariupol is a success. congratulations to you. general sir richard barrons formerly one of the british army s most senior commanders gave me his assessment. i think we should recognise the battle for mariupol in a military sense was coming to a conclusion, the ukrainian defenders in the steelworks were going to be really difficult to defeat, at enormous cost to both sides. but that defence was no longer really relevant to who controls the city and the roads that run through the city that now connect