The more than 260 Ukrainian soldiers evacuated from the Azovstal steel factory in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol are part of an exchange. This was confirmed by the Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine, Hanna Maliar, in a video message on social media without going into details.
“53 seriously injured servicemen have been transferred from the steel mill to a hospital for treatment,” Maliar said. “In addition, 211 soldiers have been brought to Olenivka via a humanitarian corridor. An exchange procedure will take place for their return home.”
The deputy minister and the army command of Ukraine reported that “the garrison in Mariupol has fulfilled its mission. “The soldiers who have defended Mariupol have given Ukraine valuable time to build up and regroup reserves and to get help from the partners,” said Ukraine. them, describing the military as ‘the heroes of our time.’ The most important thing now is to save the lives of the fighters still present on the Azovstal grounds, Maliar and the army command added. .”
Zelensky: “Difficult day”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke of a difficult day in his video message and said he hopes the lives of the besieged soldiers can be saved. “There are serious injuries among them. They are being cared for. Ukraine needs the Ukrainian heroes alive. The work continues to bring our boys home and this work must be handled delicately and takes time.”
Hours earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry had said an agreement had been reached on the evacuation of wounded from the sprawling Azovstal complex where Ukrainian soldiers have been holed up. Some of the Ukrainians were transported to Novoazovsk 35 kilometers to the east, according to Russia, to be treated. Novoazovsk is in Russian hands and is located near the border with Russia. Other soldiers moved to another spot in the area controlled by pro-Russian rebels, Russian television channel RT reported.
Order from above
Ukrainian fighters in Azovstal, for their part, had reported that an order had been given from above, but they did not clarify exactly what the intention was: “In order to save lives, the entire Mariupol garrison is carrying out the approved decision of the Supreme Military Command and hopes for the support of the Ukrainian people.”
Before the evacuation, there were reportedly about 600 Ukrainian soldiers in Azovstal, which is considered one of the largest steel factories in Europe.
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