At 10 a.m. Moscow time (0700 GMT) on Monday, the Russian military will hold fire and create humanitarian corridors in various Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv, according to Russia’s defense ministry.
The corridors, which will also be accessible from Kharkiv, Mariupol, and Sumy, are being built at the request of French President Emmanuel Macron and in light of the current situation in those towns, according to the statement.
Those who flee Kyiv will be airlifted to Russia, according to the ministry, which also stated that drones will be used to monitor the evacuation and that “attempts by the Ukrainian side to fool Russia and the entire civilized world… are futile this time.”
Over the last two days, two planned evacuation operations from Mariupol and the adjoining city of Volnovakha failed, as both sides blamed each other for failing to stop fire and shelling.