Relatives of fighters at a besieged steel plant in the eastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol have called for them to be rescued from the complex.

Five wives and one father of the fighters at the Azovstal steelworks held a news conference in the capital Kyiv on Saturday.

The wife of an Azov battalion fighter said what has been unfolding at the plant is not just a war but a massacre.

She said hundreds of wounded fighters are still trapped at the complex, and there are no anesthetics to perform surgical procedures for those who have lost limbs.

She pleaded for help for the wounded. She said the defenders cannot surrender as they know they may be executed if they are taken hostage.

The wife of a Ukrainian Marine said Chinese President Xi Jinping can talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin as both countries are economic partners.

She said she wants a fruitful dialogue that will eventually allow the fighters to evacuate to a third country such as Turkey.