(NEW YORK) — Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Sunday in an exclusive interview with ABC “This Week” that the besieged city of Mariupol has not yet fallen despite Russian demands that Ukrainians surrender.

“There [are] still our military forces, our soldiers, so they will fight until the end,” Shmyhal told “This Week” Anchor George Stephanopoulos.

Mariupol is a strategic city for Russia because it would allow Russian forces in the south to connect with troops in the Donbas region. It would also give Russia a key port.

Shmyhal said even though the city remains in Ukrainian control, its residents are suffering.

“They have no water, no food, no heat, no electricity,” Shmyhal said. “They ask all of our partners to support and help stop this humanitarian catastrophe.”

During a virtual address overnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia’s actions in Mariupol were “just inhuman.”

“Russia is deliberately trying to destroy everyone who is there in Mariupol,” Zelenskyy said.

The Russian Defence Ministry warned that the military would kill any remaining Ukrainian fighters who did not surrender before the overnight deadline.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday that Russia is regrouping and repositioning forces to the east, warning that “a big Russian offensive” is expected in the Donbas region in southeastern Ukraine.

Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week. Nehammer was the first European leader to do so since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Stephanopoulos asked Schmyhal about the Austrian chancellor’s assessment that Putin believes he is winning the war. “Has the tide turned?” he asked.

Schmyhal replied that only one big city “is under control of Russian military forces. But all of the rest of the cities are under Ukrainian control.”

On Saturday, Russia continued attacks across Ukraine, including in the capital, Kyiv. The Ukrainian president’s office reported missile strikes and shelling in eight regions across the country.

Stephanopoulos asked Schmyhal if peace talks between Ukraine and Russia have reached a dead end.

Schmyhal said Ukraine was open to diplomacy, but if Russia does not want to negotiate, Ukraine will continue to fight.

“We will not surrender; we will not leave our country, our families, our land,” Schmyhal said. “So we will fight absolutely to the end, to win in this war.”

President Joe Biden authorized $800 million more in military aid last week, after referring to Russia’s actions in Ukraine as “genocide.” Stephanopoulos asked the Ukrainian Prime Minister what more the country needs.

“We are so grateful to American people, especially to President Bident for [the] support of Ukraine,” Schmyhal said. “Only half of our economy is working, so we ask for financial support.”

Reuters has reported that Schmyhal will travel to Washington, D.C., this week along with other top Ukrainian finance officials for the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings.

Schmyhal told Stephanopoulos that while members of his financial team are in Washington, they will continue to push for additional financial support.

Stephanopoulos asked Schmyhal what his message is for the West.

“We need more sanctions from West partners. We need more ammunition to protect our country and European borders,” Schmyhal added.

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(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian troops invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Russian forces have since been met with “stiff resistance” from Ukrainians, according to U.S. officials.

In recent days, Russian forces have retreated from northern Ukraine, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction. After graphic images emerged of civilians lying dead in the streets of Bucha, a town northwest of Kyiv, the United States and European countries accused Russia of committing war crimes.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

Apr 18, 6:28 am
Russian missile strikes kill at least 7 in Lviv

At least seven people were killed and 11 others, including a child, were injured Monday morning in missile strikes across the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, according to local officia;s.

Lviv Oblast Gov. Maksym Kozystkiy said at a press conference that Russian missiles struck four targets — three Ukrainian military infrastructure facilities and a tire service shop — all of which suffered significant damage.

In a statement via social media, Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi described the missile strikes as “powerful,” saying they damaged or destroyed about 40 cars. Emergency services were responding to the deadly blasts, according to Sadovyi.

ABC News was at the scene of the burning tire service shop on the outskirts of Lviv, where firefighters were trying to extinguish the flames.

The strike also shattered the windows of a nearby orphanage as well as a hotel, where Sadovyi said evacuated Ukrainians are sheltering.

Lviv, a strategic city close to Ukraine’s border with Poland, has been considered a safe haven for Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion. The city has been largely spared from the relentless bombardment and heavy fighting seen across much of the country since Feb. 24.

-ABC News’ Brian Hartman, Max Uzol and Yuri Zaliznyak

Apr 18, 4:15 am
Mariupol besieged but not fallen, Ukrainian prime minister says

Mariupol has not yet fallen, despite Russia’s demands that Ukrainian troops defending the besieged Ukrainian port city surrender, according to Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

“There [are] still our military forces, our soldiers, so they will fight until the end,” Shmyhal told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos in an exclusive interview Sunday on This Week.

Mariupol is a strategic city for Moscow because it would allow Russian forces in the south to connect with troops in eastern Ukraine’s contested Donbas region. It would also give Moscow a key port.

Although Mariupol remains under the Ukrainian government’s control, Shmyhal said the city’s residents are suffering.

“They have no water, no food, no heat, no electricity,” he said. “They ask all of our partners to support and help stop this humanitarian catastrophe.”

-ABC News’ Monica Dunn

Apr 18, 3:56 am
Russian commanders in Mariupol ‘will be concerned,’ UK says

Russian commanders in Mariupol “will be concerned by the time it is taking to subdue” the Ukrainian port city, the U.K. Ministry of Defense said Monday in an intelligence update.

“Concerted Ukrainian resistance has severely tested Russian forces and diverted men and materiel, slowing Russia’s advance elsewhere,” the ministry said.

Mariupol, a strategic port in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast, has been under heavy Russian bombardment since the start of the invasion on Feb. 24. Strong resistance from Ukrainian troops has prevented Russian forces from taking full control of the city.

Despite Russia’s claims that it would not strike Ukrainian cities or threaten civilian lives, “the targeting of populated areas within Mariupol aligns with Russia’s approach to Chechnya in 1999 and Syria in 2016,” according to the ministry.

“The effort to capture Mariupol has come at significant cost to its residents,” the ministry added. “Large areas of infrastructure have been destroyed whilst the population has suffered significant casualties.”

Apr 17, 8:25 pm
Kharkiv mayor slams Russia for attacking on religious holiday

The mayor of Kharkiv, Igor Terekhov, lashed out at Russia for continuing its onslaught on the city despite it being Orthodox Palm Sunday.

“Dear Kharkiv citizens, today is the 53rd day of war, the war in which we are defending our lives and honor fighting against the ruthless army of the aggressor,” Terekhov said in a recorded address translated from Russian by The Associated Press.

“And also today is a big Orthodox holiday, Palm Sunday. But it looks like those who wear the letter Z do not have a cross on them,” he added, referring to the omnipresent letter painted on Russian tanks.

Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city and a key outpost in the country’s east, has been under intense shelling for days. Several people were killed in attacks on Sunday.

“Even days that are sacred to Christians are no reason for the enemy to lessen bombardments on Kharkiv,” Terekhov said.

The vast majority of people in both Russia and Ukraine are Orthodox Christians. Holy Week began on Sunday with Easter coming on April 24. Many in Ukraine, including Kharkiv, celebrated Palm Sunday in bomb-damaged churches or buildings without electricity.

“I congratulate you all, my fellow Kharkiv citizens, with Palm Sunday, and on the eve of the Holy Week, I want to wish fortitude to all of us,” Terekhov said. “The enemy is testing our resolve, let us show them that Kharkiv citizens will not be broken or intimidated.”

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