The Kyiv regime and its backers are basically claiming that because Russian forces still aren’t occupying the Azovstal steel plant, the fight for Mariupol is still ongoing. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said in his Telegram channel this morning, however, that in fact the majority of the troops trapped there want to surrender, but their commanders won’t allow them to. According to a captured Ukrainian, Kadyrov reported, “the majority of those locked behind thick walls of the plant are eager to leave the territory, holding a white flag. This initiative, however, is not supported by current commanders of nationalist battalions. Moreover, we have confirmed information about the execution of their own members who wanted to lay down weapons.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed again yesterday that those at the Azovstal plant who want to surrender still will have the chance to do so. “The Ukrainian forces had and still have a chance to lay down weapons and exit the area using the designated corridors. Such an opportunity existed before Zelenskyy’s statement” proposing a prisoner exchange, Peskov said, reported TASS.
