Isolation crisis in eastern Ukraine’s key strategic map… Zelensky calls for arms aid
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Severodonetsk, a strategic town in eastern Ukraine, is facing a crisis of isolation amid Russia’s onslaught.
Russia has said it will create a safe passage for civilians to evacuate, and the Ukrainian president has urged the West to provide arms.
This is reporter Han Mi-hee.
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Ukrainian forces have been pushed out of the heart of the eastern fortified city of Severodonetsk and threatened with isolation.
The last of the three bridges leading to friendly areas across the river to Lisichansk was also destroyed by heavy shelling by Russian troops.
After giving up the center of the city to the Russian offensive, even the retreat route is blocked.
Severodonetsk is the last major city in the eastern Luhansk Oblast not to be taken over by Russia and is under heavy attack by Russian forces.
The Russian military has demanded the surrender of Ukrainian forces, saying that it will provide a humanitarian pathway for about 500 civilians who have evacuated the Azot chemical plant, a stronghold of resistance.
Ukraine has requested a humanitarian route to Lisichansk, which is still under Ukrainian control, but the Russian military says it is an attempt to rescue besieged Ukrainian forces and will open a passage to the pro-Russian rebel-controlled area of Svatovo in the north. .
A similar situation is being reproduced with the Azoustal Works, which was the last stronghold of the Russian-controlled southern port city of Mariupol last month.
In the face of the unfavorable war situation, President Zelensky repeatedly appealed to the West for arms aid, saying that Russia’s aggression would not stop in Ukraine.
“We keep saying we need a modern missile defense system. It’s not quite good enough yet.”
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will hold a meeting on the 15th local time to coordinate additional arms support to Ukraine, including heavy weapons.
This is Yonhap News Agency Han Mi-hee.
#Ukraine #Severodonetsk #Azoustal #Zelensky
Yonhap News TV Article Inquiries and Reports: KakaoTalk/Line jebo23
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