NEW: Ukrainian military spokesperson Oleksandr Shtupun says that Russian forces are stepping up attacks in the east.
Russia is starting the next phase of its"special military operation" in neighboring Ukraine, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Russia-backed separatist forces are trying to storm a steel plant in besieged Mariupol where Ukrainian troops are holed up, according to separatist spokesperson Eduard Basurin. The territory of the Azovstal plant is the last holdout for the Ukrainian resistance in Mariupol, as Russian forces accelerate their efforts to capture city. The Mariupol City Council has previously said there are at least 1,000 people, including Ukrainian troops, on the grounds of the plant.
In the south, Russian forces are focused on reaching the administrative border of the Kherson Oblast while continuing to shell the city of Mykolaiv, Shtupun said.
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