The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Monday that it has reached an agreement for the evacuation of wounded Ukrainian fighters who have been stranded for weeks at the Azovstal steelworks in the port city of Mariupol.
However, the official note informing about the evacuation does not show the exact number of soldiers involved in the operation.
“As a result of negotiations with representatives of the Ukrainian army, which was blocked on the territory of the Azovstal steel plant, an agreement was reached for the evacuation of the wounded,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
In addition, the ministry reports that a ceasefire agreement has been agreed in the region and that a humanitarian corridor has been opened so that wounded soldiers can be evacuated and “delivered to a medical center in Novoazovsk, in the Donetsk People’s Republic.”
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for the Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories Iryna Vereschuk said last week that between 500 and 600 soldiers were injured at the steel mill.
38 of the group had a serious condition, so they chose to leave Azovstal.
Vereschuk assured that Ukraine offered to replace the wounded in the steelworks for Russian prisoners captured by Ukrainian forces.
This Monday, Alexandr Jodakovski, commander of the Vostok Battalion, which declared itself a republic of Donetsk, said that nine Ukrainian soldiers left Azovstal today to seek negotiations on a withdrawal.
source: Noticias
