Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said yesterday that Russia has begun its battle for the Donbas after regrouping ahead of an expected offensive on the country’s eastern region. “It can now be stated that Russian troops have begun the battle for Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time,” Zelenskyy said in an address.  “A very large part of the entire Russian army is now focused on this offensive.” Monique Beals reports for The Hill. 

Russia said today that its military operation in Ukraine has entered "another phase", confirming earlier reports from Ukraine that a new Russian offensive has begun in the country's eastern Donbas region. “The operation is continuing, and another phase of this operation is starting now,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said today. Rhoda Kwan reports for NBC News. "

Aftermath from the sinking of the Moskva:

"The sinking of the Russian warship Moskva is causing tension in Russia, as some families report sailors dead or missing despite the Russian Defense Ministry’s claim that the whole crew was evacuated. At least four families have shared pictures on social media of sailors who the families say served on the sunken ship and have not been heard from since the incident. Jeanne Whalen Mary Ilyushina report for the Washington Post. "

And a perspective from China:

"China says it will "continue to strengthen strategic coordination" with Russia, regardless of how the "international landscape may change," according to a statement released by China's Foreign Ministry today. China's Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng expressed this view to the Russian ambassador to China Andrey Denisov during a meeting on Monday, the ministry said. CNN reports. 

China will welcome a prolonged war in Ukraine as a “rolling strategic diversion” from its own assertiveness, former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd has said. Rudd, a Mandarin speaker who cultivated Australia’s relationship with China during his tenure, warned that China would exploit a distracted west to focus on its competition with the U.S.. James Fernyhough reports for the Financial Times. "

Today's update:

"RUSSIA, UKRAINE - MARIUPOL

Russia has claimed it has captured the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, with the exception of the Azovstal steel plant, where about 2,000 Ukrainian fighters are holding out. Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the plant to be blockaded but cancelled plans to storm it. The Guardianreports. 

In a televised meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Putin said that it would be “impractical” to storm the Azovstal steel plant and that the decision not to storm it was being made to safeguard the lives of Russian soldiers. BBC News reports. 

Ukraine has proposed to hold a “special round” of negotiations with Russia in the besieged city of Mariupol, officials have said. Ukrainian negotiator and presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said in a tweet yesterday: “Without any conditions. We’re ready to hold a ‘special round of negotiations’ right in Mariupol. One on one. Two on two. To save our guys, Azov, military, civilians, children, the living & the wounded.” The Guardian reports. 

Responding to the news that Russia will no longer try to storm the Mariupol steel plant, former commander of U.K. Joint Forces Command General Sir Richard Barrons has said that battle is no longer “really relevant” to who controls the port city. Today's announcements from Russia on Mariupol were intended to show there had been "some success" on the eve of the Russian Orthodox Easter, Barrons said. "And it allows the military not to expend much more resource on a battle for the steelworks which was military irrelevant and turn to what really matters now - the battle of the Donbas." BBC News reports. "

Edit-some additional reading:

"RUSSIA, UKRAINE - U.S. RESPONSE 

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to test-launch a new intercontinental ballistic missile, declaring it a warning to the West, has fed concerns inside the Biden administration that Russia is now so isolated that Putin sees little downside to provocative actions. “We have been so successful in disconnecting Putin from the global system that he has even more incentive to disrupt it beyond Ukraine,” according to one senior U.S.intelligence official. David E. Sanger reports for the New York Times. 

The Pentagon has said that the intercontinental ballistic missile test launched by Putin yesterday, does not pose a significant threat to the U.S.  The RS-28 Sarmat, which NATO has dubbed “Satan 2,” is considered Russia’s most powerful ICBM: a super-heavy, thermonuclear-armed intercontinental-range ballistic missile. However, whilst the weapon sounds intimidating, the escalating threats Putin has made since his invasion of Ukraine should be more concerning, defense policy and strategy scholars have said. Lateshia Beachum, Mary Ilyushina and Karoun Demirjian report for the Washington Post. "

New satellite images show a mass burial site in the Russia-occupied village of Manhusg, about 12 miles west of Mariupol, containing more than 200 new plots alongside an existing cemetery. Petro Andryushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, has said that the mass grave discovered in Manhush is significantly larger than the one discovered in Bucha — the Kyiv suburb where bodies were found strewn on streets after Russian troops withdrew. He estimated that the new mass grave is “prepared for 3,000 people.” Paulina Villegas reports for the Washington Post. 

Russia has revealed that the goal of its invasion of Ukraine is to take "full control" over southern Ukraine as well as the eastern Donbas region. "Since the beginning of the second phase of the special operation, which began literally two days ago, one of the tasks of the Russian army is to establish full control over Donbas and southern Ukraine. This will provide a land corridor to Crimea," Maj. Gen. Rustam Minnekaev, the acting commander of Russia's Central Military District, said according to Russian state news agency TASS. Anna Chernova and Nathan Hodge report for CNN. "

Edit: another article:

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