AP

Ukrainians claim to retake ground ahead of latest talks

Mar 27, 2022, 2:26 PM | Updated: Mar 28, 2022, 5:35 pm

Ukrainian soldiers, top left, stand near the bodies of two Russian soldiers in Trostsyanets, Ukrain...

Ukrainian soldiers, top left, stand near the bodies of two Russian soldiers in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)


              Ukrainian soldiers, top left, stand near the bodies of two Russian soldiers in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Sandbags, for protection cover the entrance of a building, at a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A volunteer folds army clothes inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food , medicines, and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers gather near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              An icon is wrapped on a column of a building inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian servicemen walk at a damaged train station in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Local residents pass at a damaged Russian tank in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The monument to Second World War is seen in background. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, left, mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Residents lining up for aid watch as Ukrainian soldiers ride atop a tank in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers, top left, stand near the bodies of two Russian soldiers in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Sandbags, for protection cover the entrance of a building, at a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A volunteer folds army clothes inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food , medicines, and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers gather near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              An icon is wrapped on a column of a building inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian servicemen walk at a damaged train station in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Local residents pass at a damaged Russian tank in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The monument to Second World War is seen in background. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, left, mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Residents lining up for aid watch as Ukrainian soldiers ride atop a tank in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers, top left, stand near the bodies of two Russian soldiers in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Sandbags, for protection cover the entrance of a building, at a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A volunteer folds army clothes inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food , medicines, and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers gather near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              An icon is wrapped on a column of a building inside a Ukrainian volunteer center in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukrainian volunteers have set up a center to supply army and civilians with clothes, food, medicines and makeshift bullet proof vests. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian servicemen walk at a damaged train station in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Local residents pass at a damaged Russian tank in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The monument to Second World War is seen in background. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, left, mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Residents lining up for aid watch as Ukrainian soldiers ride atop a tank in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              The bodies of two Russian soldiers are seen at the woods in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers pass in front of damaged Russian military trucks in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, left, mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Displaced people arrive with a damaged bus at the Ukrainian Red Cross center, in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. They have been evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands near a long trench built by Ukrainian army near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, mourns the death of her son during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A woman walks past a destroyed tank in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              In this image from video provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during an interview with independent Russian news media from Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank near the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              The bodies of two Russian soldiers are seen at the woods in Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers pass in front of damaged Russian military trucks in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, left, mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Displaced people arrive with a damaged bus at the Ukrainian Red Cross center, in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. They have been evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands near a long trench built by Ukrainian army near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, mourns the death of her son during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A woman walks past a destroyed tank in the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              In this image from video provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during an interview with independent Russian news media from Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank near the town of Trostsyanets, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Trostsyanets was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces after being held by Russians since the early days of the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian Marina Stadnik from Kramatosrk, right, arrives with her four children at a train station in Przemysl, southeastern Poland, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
            
              Ukrainian Marina Stadnik from Kramatosrk, right, arrives with her four children at a train station in Przemysl, southeastern Poland, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian member of the military weeps during the funeral ceremony of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, and 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian member of the military weeps during the funeral ceremony of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, and 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian flag is installed on an apartment building damaged by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian flag is installed on an apartment building damaged by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A soldier smokes a cigarette near the frontline in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A soldier smokes a cigarette near the frontline in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier holds the photograph of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier holds the photograph of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier guards a position next to destroyed Russian tank near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Mykolaivna Shankarukina, 54, kisses her son from inside a damaged bus as she is leaving from the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Shankarukina and her family evacuated from Sablagodante village at Mykolaiv district that have been attacked by the Russian army. She and her grandson go to Odesa and from there to Prague, as the rest of the family (son, daughter in law and little grandson) will stay in Mykolaiv in a center for displaced residents. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands near a long trench built by Ukrainian army near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A man rides a bicycle backdropped by a statue of Grand Princess Olga of Kyiv, in the process of being covered in sandbags to avoid damage from potential shelling, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality and consider a compromise on contested areas in the country's east, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of another round of talks set for Tuesday on stopping the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers gather near the front line in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Local residents pass at a damaged Russian tank after resent fight in the town of Trostsyanets, some 400km (250 miles) east of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Displaced people arrive with a damaged bus at the Ukrainian Red Cross center, in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. They have been evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              The mother of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov mourns his death during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Myroslva Chernikova 54-year-old mother of 32-year-old Senior Lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, mourns the death of her son during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers ride a tank through the town of Trostsyanets, some 400 km eastern of capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Sofia Boiko, 90 years old, arrives at the Ukrainian Red Cross center in Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine, on Monday, March 28, 2022. Boiko who is traveling alone and other people evacuated from regions that have been attacked by the Russian army in Mykolaiv district. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              A soldier stands on a bridge destroyed by the Ukrainian army to prevent the passage of Russian tanks near Brovary, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Ukrainian Marina Stadnik from Kramatosrk, right, arrives with her four children at a train station in Przemysl, southeastern Poland, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian member of the military weeps during the funeral ceremony of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, and 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian flag is installed on an apartment building damaged by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A soldier smokes a cigarette near the frontline in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier holds the photograph of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Ukrainian Marina Stadnik from Kramatosrk, right, arrives with her four children at a train station in Przemysl, southeastern Poland, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian member of the military weeps during the funeral ceremony of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, and 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian flag is installed on an apartment building damaged by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A soldier smokes a cigarette near the frontline in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier holds the photograph of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Ukrainian Marina Stadnik from Kramatosrk, right, arrives with her four children at a train station in Przemysl, southeastern Poland, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian member of the military weeps during the funeral ceremony of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, and 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              A Ukrainian flag is installed on an apartment building damaged by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A soldier smokes a cigarette near the frontline in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian soldier holds the photograph of 47-year-old soldier Roman Valkov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. The more than month-old war has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes — including almost 4 million from their country. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Halyna Falko looks at the destruction caused after a Russian attack inside her house near Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A member of the security team walks by a Fidler on the Roof themed mural at the Anatevka Jewish settlement outside Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Anatevka was built in 2015 at the initiative of Rabbi Moshe Azman for Jewish people displaced by the conflict in eastern Ukraine and is still used for families who need to leave their homes in areas where affected by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands in a street in Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Relatives and friends react near the coffin of Ukrainian servicemen Oleksiy Lunyov in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A member of the security team walks by a Fidler on the Roof themed mural at the Anatevka Jewish settlement outside Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Anatevka was built in 2015 at the initiative of Rabbi Moshe Azman for Jewish people displaced by the conflict in eastern Ukraine and is still used for families who need to leave their homes in areas where affected by fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands in a street in Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer patrols during a night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman looks out from a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands on a tank in the village of Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Monday March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              Ukrainian soldiers carry the coffin of 32-year-old Senior lieutenant Pavlo Chernikov, during his funeral ceremony, after being killed in action, at the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Church, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              People pray during a service at the Holy Eucharist Church, a day after Russian rockets hit an oil facility and factory in an industrial area, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
            
              Andrii ,31, a soldier from territorial defense, poses for the picture while saying "Glory to Ukraine" during a break from finishing a small trench in Kalynivka, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian special police officer walks next to a destroyed building as he patrols during night curfew in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              A church is damaged after a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              Men lower the coffin of Ukrainian serviceman Oleksiy Lunyov into his gravesite in Yuzhne, Odessa region, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Lunyov was killed during a Russian missile attack in Mykolaiv on March 18. (AP Photo/Max Pshybyshevsky)
            
              A monument of Taras Shevchenko, a Ukrainian poet and a national symbol, is covered with bags to protect it from Russian shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. The bronze, 16-meter high monument was placed in 1935, survived WWII and is considered one of the world's best monuments to Shevchenko. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Demonstrators dance around a burning an effigy of the Russian President Vladimir Putin during an anti-war action in Tbilisi, Georgia, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman walks in a heavily damaged building in Stoyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of lacking courage as his country fights to stave off Russia's invading troops, making an exasperated plea for fighter jets and tanks to sustain a defense in a conflict that has ground into a war of attrition. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              Emergency workers search for bodies under the debris of the regional administration building, heavily damaged after a Russian attack earlier this month in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
            
              The mother of Russian Army soldier Rustam Zarifulin, who was killed fighting in Ukraine, center, cries surrounded by relatives during a farewell ceremony in his homeland in Kara-Balta, 60 km (37 miles) west of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Vladimir Voronin)
            
              A man holds fragments of a rocket launched by the Russian forces at night, a rocket crater behind him, in the center of Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
            
              Members of the territorial defense warm themselves with a fire at a check point in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A journalist walks amid the destruction after a Russian attack in Byshiv, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of lacking courage as his country fights to stave off Russia's invading troops, making an exasperated plea for fighter jets and tanks to sustain a defense in a conflict that has ground into a war of attrition. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman walks on the edge of a forest in Stoyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of lacking courage as his country fights to stave off Russia's invading troops, making an exasperated plea for fighter jets and tanks to sustain a defense in a conflict that has ground into a war of attrition. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
            
              A Ukrainian serviceman stands in a heavily damaged building in Stoyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, March 27, 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of lacking courage as his country fights to stave off Russia's invading troops, making an exasperated plea for fighter jets and tanks to sustain a defense in a conflict that has ground into a war of attrition. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian forces claimed to have retaken a Kyiv suburb and an eastern town from the Russians in what is becoming a back-and-forth stalemate on the ground, while negotiators began assembling for another round of talks Tuesday aimed at stopping the fighting.

Ahead of the talks, to be held in Istanbul, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country is prepared to declare its neutrality, as Moscow has demanded, and is open to compromise on the fate of the Donbas, the contested region in the country’s east.

The mayor of Irpin, a northwestern Kyiv suburb that has been the scene of some of the heaviest fighting near the capital, said Monday that the city has been “liberated” from Russian troops.

Zelenskyy warned that Russian forces are trying to regroup after losing the area.

“We still have to fight, we have to endure,” the president said late Monday in his nighttime video address to the nation. “We can’t express our emotions now. We can’t raise expectations, simply so that we don’t burn out.”

Irpin gained wide attention after photos circulated of a mother and her two children who were killed by shelling as they tried to flee, their bodies lying on the pavement with luggage and a pet carrier nearby.

A senior U.S. defense official said the U.S. believes the Ukrainians have also retaken the town of Trostyanets, south of Sumy, in the east.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss U.S. intelligence assessments, said Russian forces largely remained in defensive positions near the capital, Kyiv, and were making little forward progress elsewhere in the country.

The official said Russia appeared to be de-emphasizing ground operations near Kyiv and concentrating more on the Donbas, the predominantly Russian-speaking region where Moscow-backed rebels have been waging a separatist war for the past eight years.

Late last week, with its forces bogged down in parts of the country, Russia seemed to scale back its war aims, saying its main goal was gaining control of the Donbas.

While that suggested a possible face-saving exit strategy for Russian President Vladimir Putin, it also raised Ukrainian fears that the Kremlin intends to split the country in two and force it to surrender a swath of its territory.

Meanwhile, a cyberattack knocked Ukraine’s national telecommunications provider Ukrtelecom almost completely offline. The chief of Ukraine’s state service for special communication, Yurii Shchyhol, blamed “the enemy” without specifically naming Russia and said most customers were cut off from telephone, internet and mobile service so that coverage could continue for Ukraine’s military.

Also Monday, an oil depot in western Ukraine’s Rivne region was hit by a missile attack, the governor said. It was the second attack on oil facilities in the region near the Polish border.

In recent days, Ukrainian troops have pushed the Russians back in other sectors.

In the city of Makariv, near a strategic highway west of the capital, Associated Press reporters saw the carcass of a Russian rocket launcher, a burned Russian truck, the body of a Russian soldier and a destroyed Ukrainian tank after fighting there a few days ago. In the nearby village of Yasnohorodka, the AP witnessed positions abandoned by Ukrainian soldiers who had moved farther west, but no sign of Russian troops.

And on Friday, the U.S. defense official said the Russians were no longer in full control of Kherson, the first major city to fall to Moscow’s forces. The Kremlin denied it had lost full control of the southern city.

Russia has long demanded that Ukraine drop any hope of joining NATO, which Moscow sees as a threat. Zelenskyy, for his part, has stressed that Ukraine needs security guarantees of its own as part of any deal.

Over the weekend, Zelenskyy said he is ready to agree to neutrality. He also said that “Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are beyond doubt,” while suggesting at the same time that compromise might be possible over “the complex issue of Donbas.”

The Ukrainian leader has suggested as much before but rarely commented so extensively. That could create momentum for the talks, for which the Russian delegates arrived in Istanbul on Monday, Turkish media reported.

Still, it was not clear how a compromise on the Donbas would square with maintaining Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

In other developments:

— President Joe Biden made no apologies for calling for Putin’s ouster, saying he was expressing his “moral outrage,” not a new U.S. policy. Over the weekend, Biden said, “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power.” On Monday, the president said: “I’m not walking anything back.”

— U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he has launched an effort to achieve a humanitarian cease-fire that would allow aid to be brought in and people to move around safely.

— Russia’s invasion has most Americans at least somewhat worried that the U.S. will be drawn directly into the conflict and could be targeted with nuclear weapons, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

— T he Group of Seven major economies rejected a Kremlin demand that some countries pay in rubles for Russia’s natural gas. That demand appeared designed to support the Russian currency, which is under pressure from Western sanctions.

Earlier talks, both by video and in person, have failed to make progress on ending the more than month-old war that has killed thousands and driven more than 10 million Ukrainians from their homes. That includes almost 4 million who have fled the country.

In the besieged southern port of Mariupol, the mayor said half the pre-war population of more than 400,000 has fled, often under fire, during weeks of shooting and shelling.

Alina Beskrovna, who escaped the city in a convoy of cars and made it to Poland, said desperate people are melting snow for water and cooking on open fires despite the risk of bombardment, “because if you don’t, you will have nothing to eat.”

“A lot of people are just, I think, starving to death in their apartments right now with no help,” she said. “It’s a mass murder that’s happening at the hands of the Russians.”

Putin’s ground forces have become bogged down because of stronger-than-expected Ukrainian resistance, combined with what Western officials say are Russian tactical missteps, poor morale, shortages of food, fuel and cold weather gear, and other problems. Moscow has resorted to pummeling Ukrainian cities with artillery and airstrikes.

In Stoyanka village near Kyiv, Ukrainian soldier Serhiy Udod said Russian troops had taken up defensive positions and suffered heavy losses.

The Russians probably “thought it would be like Crimea,” which the Kremlin annexed in 2014. “But here it’s not like in Crimea. We are not happy to see them. Here they suffer and get killed.”

___

Andrea Rosa in Kharkiv, Nebi Qena in Kyiv, Cara Anna in Lviv and Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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