Day 27: Battle rages on around Ukrainian capital Kiev

Fierce battle reportedly rages on around Ukraine’s capital Kiev as Russian forces push to completely surround the city on the 27th day of a Russian military operation in the ex-Soviet republic.

Reporting on Tuesday, Ukraine’s defense ministry alleged that the country’s forces had retaken control of Makariv, a suburb of the capital that lies 37 miles (59 kilometers) away from it. Makariv is seen as a strategic location, whose capture would help the Russian forces besiege the capital.

The ministry, however, said the Russian forces had taken partial control of other northwestern suburbs.

The Ukrainian capital is, meanwhile, under curfew. “All the shops have closed and roads are deserted as smoke from yet another Russian attack billows behind the city,” AFP reported.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” aimed at “demilitarization” of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in eastern Ukraine. In 2014, the two regions declared themselves new republics, refusing to recognize Ukraine’s Western-backed government.

Announcing the operation, Putin said the mission was aimed at “defending people who for eight years are suffering persecution and genocide by the Kiev regime.”

On Day 16th of the operation, the Russian military said it was encircling Kiev, the city of Kharkiv in the east, Sumy in northeast, and Mariupol in the southwest.

The Russian military is setting up safe passages for locals to leave the cities.

Russia says it will halt the military operation instantly if Kiev meets Moscow’s list of conditions. Moscow has specified some of the demands as protection of its interests and nationals in Ukraine and prevention of the country’s accession to the Western military alliance of NATO.

Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelensky, who has gone on a virtual tour of European legislative bodies, told the Italian parliament that that his country was on the brink of surviving the war.

He also said the crisis risked causing famine in countries around the world.

UN: Ukraine war ‘unwinnable’

Also on Tuesday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the reverberations of the crisis were being felt globally with skyrocketing food, energy, and fertilizer prices threatening to spiral into a global hunger crisis.

Speaking to reporters in New York, he called the conflict an "absurd war."

Guterres added that "the only outcome" to more fighting was "more suffering, more destruction, and more horror as far as the eye can see."

"This war is unwinnable. Sooner or later, it will have to move from the battlefield to the peace table. That is inevitable," he added.

The UN says almost 3.6 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian operation.

The Kremlin has signaled dissatisfaction with the quality of ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine, saying it preferred for the negotiations to be more active and substantive.

Kremlin: Russia seeks ‘more substantial’ talks with Ukraine to end conflict

Russia says it would like to have more “substantial” talks with Kiev to end the Ukraine conflict.

Russian and Ukrainian officials have held several rounds of talks since Russia began the military operation.

The most high-level negotiations were held between the foreign ministers in Turkey. But diplomacy has so far failed to produce any breakthrough.

Zelensky has repeatedly called for direct talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, saying he was ready for a compromise to end the conflict. Moscow says the latest round of talks has not made enough progress to warrant a meeting between the two heads of state.

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