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CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: Talk to me about Mariupol. I mean, it’s just devastated. And the mayor there today said, we are in the hands of the occupiers today. Do you know what he actually meant? Is Mariupol still standing? Do you still control it? What did he mean by that?
IGOR ZHOVKVA, DEPUTY HEAD OF THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Well, some part of Mariupol is really under the control of Russian armed forces. And you well know that even they started to forcefully deport people to Russia or to the Russian occupied parts of Ukraine, forcefully they are doing this. More than 15,000 citizens of Mariupol are forcefully being, you know, being taken to the Russian parts. It’s maybe from the left bank of Mariupol. While the other parts are still fighting for by Ukrainian armed forces, if you are asking me about humanitarian situations, really disasters. You know, it is the case for more than two weeks, you know, so many people have managed to evacuate, especially using the official corridors, which, you know, practically started to function only the last several days. Before the people had to go buy food on their own and were picked up on the roads by our rescue teams somewhere close to some other cities. So, this is absolutely a disaster. And you know that every hour, practically, this city is bombarded. The civilian objects are bombarded. These awful things with a drama theater, with the maternity hospital, they are starting to strike from the sea, et cetera. So yes, we need the efforts of the international community with the evacuation and with, you know, just, you know, the city not to be wiped out from the ground. Because, I mean, they practically using the tactics which were used in Aleppo, you know, it’s like reminding the situation. But, yes, you heard my president yesterday, the people are the most important target for them, unfortunately going on civilians, and we will fight for our people. So, we are thankful to the initiative some European leaders helping to evacuate the city.
About This Episode EXPAND
Ilya Ponomarev is fighting this war right alongside the Ukrainian people – despite being a former member of the Russian parliament. Fiona Hill discusses the impact of Biden’s remarks in Warsaw – which the White House insists were not a call for regime change in Russia – and how Putin is likely to react. New talks between Ukraine and Russia are set to begin tomorrow in Istanbul.
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