Ukrainian Commander Says Russia ‘Violated’ Truce At Mariupol Steel Plant, Though Kremlin Still Denies Storming The Area

One of the top-ranking Ukrainian defenders of the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works Complex said in a Telegram post Thursday that Russian forces broke a peace truce allowing for civilians to leave the complex.

Sviatoslav Palamar, the deputy commander, said that a promise to allow for civilians to evacuate from the plant was violated.

Russian forces have not entered the plant and humanitarian corridors are working today, according to the Kremlin spokesman.

The smoke coming from the Azovstal steel complex was captured by satellite imagery, which supports the claim of Russia storming the plant, and the Kremlin has previously denied violence later accepted as fact by most international observers.

The city's mayor said Tuesday that more than 200 people are still in the underground.

Mariupol, a port city with a pre-war population of about 400,000, has been a prized target for Russia since the beginning of the invasion due to its economic and strategic significance. Russia would be able to build a land bridge from the peninsula it annexed from Ukraine to the eastern part of the country. Mariupol is a key trading and industrial hub in Ukraine, and fighting to reduce the city to rubble has crippled the country's economy. The tactics of Russia in Mariupol have been particularly brutal, with several allegations of targeting civilian infrastructure, including a strike on a theater where the Associated Press estimates 600 people were killed. At least 10,000 people have died in Mariupol.

A senior U.S. defense official told reporters that there were only about 2,000 Russian troops in Mariupol. Thousands of Russian military personnel who fought in Mariupol have moved to support Russia's offensive in eastern Ukraine, an official said.

What To Watch For

There is a military parade in Mariupol next Tuesday. Russian forces are clearing the streets of Mariupol of debris and dead bodies in preparation for a parade, and many expect the Kremlin to escalate its invasion on Victory Day, such as officially declaring war on Ukraine.

The US believes that most Russian troops have left Mariupol.

Mariupol is a prized target for Russia.