Worth the wait until the end – VG

Fighting continues in Mariupol, and the city’s defenders fend off Russian demands to abandon the city, which they claim is under the control of “bandits”. Ukrainians understand that it is worth keeping the city to the end, says Lieutenant-Colonel Pal Yedistibo.

There is no doubt about any surrender or ceasefireUkrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshuk stated on the Russian demands for the surrender of the important port city.

The siege, shelling and fierce fighting in the streets intensified On the civilian population large parts of the city were destroyed.

Mariupol has been under siege for several weeks.

Russia is said to have asked Ukrainian “nationalists” to lay down their arms, saying that in this case they would provide safe travel outside the city on Monday – east and west – according to the Russian news agency.

On Monday evening, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that You will support the Russian people if compromises are reached with the Russians.

The president also said that Ukraine would never accept the Russian occupation of Ukrainian cities such as Kharkiv, Mariupol and Kiev.

– Intense use of resources

Lieutenant Colonel Bali Yedistipu is the Head of the Land Force Division at the Military School. He notes that the Ukrainians know that the battles for the important port city are constraining Russian forces.

– Another battle will require large resources for the Russians and will inflict losses on them both in soldiers and equipment. Ukraine knows that as long as they hold Mariupol, the Russians must use relatively large forces to take control of the city, forces that would have been used elsewhere, but would also suffer losses and must be rested and re-equipped before being used elsewhere. After the city is finally captured, Ydstebø writes in an email to VG.

The colonel assures that the city is of great strategic importance to the Russians.

Mariupol is of strategic importance because it prevents the possibility of Russia establishing a landowner relationship with Crimea. The Ukrainians also know this, and therefore it is worth keeping it to the end.

European Union Foreign Minister Josep Borrell on Monday described the Russian attack on the city as a “huge war crime”, AFP reported.

For their part, the Russians also made allegations of crimes and “bandits” in Mariupol.

The state-regulated Russian news agency (RIA) wrote that “the authorities must choose either of them “Stand with their people,” or with “thieves.” If not, they will face a ‘court martial’..

Yestebo does not rule out that the statement was a propaganda play on the Russian side.

– It is not good to say, but it can be a form of martial law to set an example for the local Ukrainian civil authorities who do not want to cooperate with the Russians, he wrote.

It could also be a propaganda ploy to intimidate the Ukrainian civilian authorities into capitulating to Russian military rule. With such proposals, Russians can try to appear as though they want to appear “sane” and put an end to the suffering they are causing themselves, Yedestibo explains.

On Sunday, the authorities in Mariupol claimed that Several thousand residents of the city were deprived of their Ukrainian passports and forced to cross the border into Russia. The Russian version says that they were “saved from” the war-torn city.

Ydstebø does not believe the fighting Ukrainians have any illusions about Russian offers to leave the city peacefully.

– Ukrainian soldiers do not trust the Russians, they have seen how civilian leaders are being kidnapped and disappeared, and they probably have no illusions about what kind of “show” from the Russian side. The best they could hope for would be prisoner-of-war status if they survived and were captured, Yedistibo wrote..

The degree of uncertainty associated with these corridors also contributes to Ukrainian soldiers having reason to be suspicious. He concludes that at the same time they know that the Russians will struggle to capture Mariupol and defeat the defenders, and know that the longer they stand, the stronger the Ukrainian defense in general.