Ukraine denies Russian claim of safe evacuation path from Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol

The Russian Ministry of Defense issued a statement on Tuesday stating that Russian forces had opened an evacuation path outside the besieged Azovstal steel complex in Mariupol, a claim that a Ukrainian police official on the scene denied.

“Given the catastrophic situation that has developed at the Azovstal metallurgical plant in the city of Mariupol, and also guided by purely humane principles, from 14:00 (2:00 pm Moscow time) on April 19, 2022, the Russian Armed Forces opened a humanitarian corridor for the withdrawal of Ukrainian military personnel who voluntarily laid down their arms and militants of nationalist formations,” the statement read. “For this purpose, a ‘ceasefire mode’ has been introduced, any hostilities have been stopped, units of the Russian Armed Forces and the formations of the Donetsk People’s Republic along the entire perimeter of Azovstal have been withdrawn to a safe distance.”

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The message also called on Ukrainian military to surrender. “Realizing that the commanders of Ukrainian units may not receive such orders and commands from Kyiv authorities, we urge them to make the decision on their own and lay down their arms,” it said.

The chief of the Mariupol Patrol Police, Myhailo Vershynin, described the Russian conditions as “unacceptable” for the Ukrainian forces occupying the plant.

“No one will agree to them,” he said. “Exits, corridors, etc., they have already announced this a thousand times.” 

Vershynin stated that the Azovstal complex, where Ukrainian defenders are holding out and people are taking refuge, was under attack “super-powerful bombs. And this will continue.”

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On Monday evening, a video of women and children allegedly hiding in the basement of the Azovstal facility in the besieged Ukrainian port of Mariupol surfaced on social media. Vershynin stated that the Russians had let some citizens to leave the city, but that others were hesitant to leave along evacuation routes that led into Russian-controlled territory.

“Those who remained in (Azovstal) shelters are people who categorically do not want to go to the DPR (the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic), they want to go to Ukraine,” Vershynin said.

“That is why we are requesting: Organise a corridor, the safety of the civilians must be guaranteed. The Russians believe it’s fake. It’s not fake. This is a real video filmed in the shelters of the plant. We cannot go to all the shelters due to constant shelling. We have filmed in a shelter that we could reach. And there are hundreds of such people all over the territory. They [the Russians] are declaring humanitarian corridors, a ceasefire. They say, come out, surrender, get the civilians out of here. Those civilians who wanted to leave, have left. Those who stayed they will not go to the Russians. That is why we are asking for a humanitarian corridor to Ukrainian side,” Vershynin said.

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Later that night, the Russian Ministry of Defense issued a statement saying it was offering a ceasefire to Ukrainian forces encircled in the besieged city of Mariupol beginning Wednesday at 2:00 pm Moscow time, claiming that Ukrainian forces had failed to take advantage of a previous offer to withdraw and lay down arms.

According to the Russian statement, Russian armed forces and separatist Donetsk People’s Republic formations would suspend combat operations around the besieged Azovstal steel factory and evacuate to a safe distance at that time.