Ukraine war: Zelenskyy fears Russia’s invasion is just the beginning, amid warnings conflict could last for ‘long period’

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was just the beginning, and Moscow has ambitions to capture other nations.

It comes after Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu declared that the country intends to introduce new methods of warfare, with the conflict now entering its 59th day.

The UK Ministry of Defense has interpreted these comments as a “tacit admission” that the war is not progressing as Vladimir Putin intended.

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British officials believe it will take time Russia adapt its tactics and, for now, “bombing is likely to continue to be relied upon as a means of trying to suppress Ukrainian opposition.”

Speaking during his tour of India, Boris Johnson warned that there is a “realistic possibility” that the war in Ukraine could go on for a long period.

And while the security situation is improving in kyiv, the prime minister has accepted a Western intelligence assessment that suggests the conflict will continue through most of 2022 and end with a victory for President Putin.

On Friday, a Russian general said that Moscow wants to seize all of southern and eastern Ukraine as a new phase of the invasion begins.

This plan involves capturing the entire Donbas region, connecting it to the Crimean peninsula, and controlling the land stretching into the breakaway Russian-occupied region of Moldova.

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Key developments:

• The United Kingdom will reopen its embassy in kyiv

• Moldova’s Foreign Ministry summoned Moscow’s ambassador amid “deep concerns” that the country’s Russian-speaking population was being oppressed

• UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will visit Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the urgency of bringing peace to Ukraine, and could visit kyiv.

• The Russian Defense Ministry says one sailor has died and 27 are missing after the Moskva missile cruiser sank last week.

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‘The fighting, the bombing, the bombing does not stop’

The port city of Mariupol has been largely reduced to smoldering rubble after weeks of shelling.

Images broadcast on Russian state television appeared to show the flag of pro-Moscow Donetsk separatists hoisted on the highest point in the city: a television tower.

Another video claimed to show the main building of the Azovstal steel plant on fire – the last known pocket of resistance within the city.

An estimated 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers remain holed up in the vast compound, outnumbered by Russian forces, along with 1,000 civilians.

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President Putin has declared victory in the Battle of Mariupol and has ordered his forces not to storm the plant. Instead, he told them to seal it off so those inside would have no choice but to surrender.

Petro Andryushchenko, adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, said Russian troops dropped several bombs on Azovstal every day, adding: “The fighting, the shelling, the shelling does not stop.”

Overall, more than 100,000 people are believed to remain trapped in Mariupol with little food, water or heating, and no humanitarian corridors were opened on Friday because it was too dangerous.

An estimated 20,000 civilians have been killed in the past two months, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk urged those remaining in Mariupol to “be patient” and “hold on”.

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Satellite images show new mass graves

New satellite images from Maxar have uncovered the existence of a second cemetery east of Mariupol that appears to have spread in recent weeks.

It includes several long trenches that are, or are likely to become, new graves.

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Local officials shared a photo of a 45 meter by 25 meter mass grave and expressed fear that it could contain the bodies of at least 1,000 people.

The discovery of mass graves has led to accusations that the Russians are trying to cover up the killing of civilians in the city.

Earlier this week, satellite photos also appeared to show row upon row of freshly dug mass graves in the town of Manhush, west of Mariupol.