Russia has said it will guarantee the lives of the remaining Ukrainian troops defending the besieged city of Mariupol who surrender in the coming hours.

Ukrainian troops have been told their lives will be spared if they abandon a stronghold in the Azovstal steelworks and leave their weapons and ammunition behind. 

Moscow has claimed that the steelworks is the only part of the city that is not under its control. 

The BBC reported that the forces were given a time window of several hours after 6am Moscow time (4am BST).

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said an attack on the remaining forces in the city would end peace talks between the two countries. 

He called the situation in the city "inhumane" in his virtual address to the nation on Saturday evening. 

Mr Zelensky said: "The situation in Mariupol remains as severe as possible. Just inhuman. 

“This is what the Russian Federation did. Deliberately did. And deliberately continues to destroy cities. Russia is deliberately trying to destroy everyone who is there in Mariupol.”

Repeated warnings have been issued about a worsening humanitarian situation in the port city. 

Russian forces had previously prevented humanitarian access as many residents were left without light, communication, medicine, heat and even water.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said Russia’s ultimate objective remains the same despite its shifted “operational focus” to eastern Ukraine.

“It is committed to compelling Ukraine to abandon its Euro-Atlantic orientation and asserting its own regional dominance,” it said early on Sunday morning.