Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Zelensky: Ukraine will pull out of peace talks if Russia kills Mariupol defenders

President Volodymyr Zelensky gave an unusual press conference for Ukrainian and foreign journalists on the platform of the Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) metro station in Kyiv yesterday.
Photo: EPA/BGNES

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warns he'll call off peace talks with Russia if Mariupol's defenders are killed and "if a pseudo-referendum to create new pseudo-republics" in the occupied territories is announced, Reuters reported.  

At a press conference in Kyiv subway yesterday, Zelensky again called for face-to-face talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war..

Russian forces in Ukraine tried to storm the Azovstal steel plant housing soldiers and civilians in Mariupol on Saturday while attempting to crush the last corner of resistance, the Associated Press reported. The assault on the eve of Orthodox Easter came after the Kremlin claimed its military had seized all of Mariupol except for the Azovstal plant.

The fate of the Ukrainians holed up in the steel mill wasn't immediately clear; earlier Saturday, a Ukrainian volunteer military unit “Azov” released a video in which women and children are shown holed up underground.

In the meanwhile Russia's military pounded other cities and towns in southern and eastern Ukraine. A three-month-old baby was among at least eight people killed after Russian cruise missiles were fired at Odessa, AP has quoted Ukrainian authorities as saying.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will visit Ukraine today, Volodymyr Zelensky said. The country has long awaited a high-profile visit from the US as a sign of support, the BBC said.




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Bulgaria to build new high-speed railway line to Turkey

The National Railway Infrastructure Company is preparing a new electrified railway connection to the border crossing at Lesovo. It will improve connectivity and traffic capacity between Bulgaria and Turkey , the company announced. The pre-investment..

published on 8/13/25 9:05 AM

Sofia roundtable to tackle sheep and goat pox solutions

Today, experts will seek solutions to the sheep and goat pox outbreak in Bulgaria at a round table event at the University of National and World Economy in Sofia. This highly contagious infection in small ruminants is spreading mainly in the Plovdiv..

published on 8/13/25 8:20 AM

Heatwave continues, yellow code is in force

On Wednesday, minimum temperatures will range from 18 to 23°C , in Sofia – 18°. It will be a sunny and hot day, with a yellow heat warning in place for western and central Bulgaria. There will be a light to moderate easterly wind. Maximum..

published on 8/12/25 7:05 PM