UK intelligence: 14 explosions reported around Russian-controlled city of Mariupol

Pro-Russian officials have reported at least 14 explosions around the Russian-occupied city of Mariupol, since February 21.

Caliber.Az reports referring to the Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine, which is published by the UK Defence Ministry on February 27.

Sites of the incidents have included an ammo cache at the airport, two fuel depots, and a steelworks that Russia uses as a military base. Mariupol lies at least 80km away from the front line.

"Russia will likely be concerned that unexplained explosions are occurring in a zone it had probably previously assessed as beyond the range of routine Ukrainian strike capabilities," the report said.

Although widely devasted earlier in the war, Mariupol is important to Russia because it is the. largest city Russia captured in 2022 that it still controls, and sits on a key logistics route, the defence ministry added.