First and foremost let me express the sincerest support and admiration to what you do and how you defend Mariupol and along with it the whole Ukraine. Sincerely.
Literally the day before you urged the world to save Mariupol garrison and apply the “extraction” procedure, similar to the Dunkirk operation. What should that practically look like?
I think that the main factor is the security guarantees and representatives of international organizations like UNO that could practically ensure safety and transfer people from Mariupol garrison.
You made several appeals to world leaders, to the Pope, but there is no information about their responses in public. Do I get it right: there were no responses?
No one except our president did not get in touch in any way, if we’re talking about leaders that I appealed to. Neither in written, nor in telephone or any other way. No one from world diplomats or representatives of international humanitarian missions did not get in touch with either me or my brothers in arms who command the Mariupol garrison beside me.
Who is now in charge of Mariupol garrison that consists of the navy, Azov regiment, National Guard and Territorial Defense forces? How do you communicate with each other?
The leader of Mariupol garrison is Mr. Redys, commander of the Azov regiment. We all gathered on his base, that’s why he is the senior commander here. We all carry out his orders.
Did the nature of russian army actions change since putin ordered Shoigu not to assault Mariupol industrial zone on 21 April?
Tonight we had 50 airstrikes and direct strike of airial bomb into our hospital. All medical infrastructure, operation room are destroyed. A lot of fellows died in place. A lot of wounded got new wounds, doctors were wounded, meaning that situation is getting more critical. It’s only getting worse. Not to mention continuous artillery fire, infantry assaults and tanks – they work in that direction all the time.
You mean the underground hospital that you showed on the terrifying video the day before?
Yes, of course. There’s no safety on the ground since long ago. Anyone who is on the ground either gets wounded or dies – the density of fire is very high.
You said that there are around 400 wounded in the underground hospital? How did that number change after night events?
I’m not ready to tell. I can’t tell the details for obvious reasons. But I will reiterate that the operation room is completely destroyed. I mean the instruments and the place where we created at least some conditions for urgent operations no longer exist.
As far as I understand, medicines that you were already short on no longer exist either?
Yes, they are destroyed. We can no longer perform surgeries in field conditions.
There was also information from your brothers in arms about phosphorus bombs used over the iron works territory. How does that affect defense?
I confirm that [russians - S. K.] use phosphorus ammunition. Without paying any regard, they simply pull down, burn out the facility where we are located. There’s no building left intact here.
The fire is so dense and strong that I can’t even tell you. During 10 hours of nap time at night there were more than 50 airstrikes, not to mention the work of marine artillery from russian war ships, infantry artillery that works non-stop. We don’t even count that kind of fire.
Literally the day before in an interview for LB.ua the founder and first commander of Azov regiment Andriy Biletskyi said that according to his assessment around 10% of all russian army forces are concentrated in Mariupol. Do you feel that is the case?
I can’t give a precise assessment of the ratio of all the forces of russian federation that are deployed to Ukraine. The fact is that the enemy exceeds us tens of times, twenty times or maybe even more. If we are talking about equipment, machines, artillery, they exceed us hundreds of times. We have no means in either air or sea. That’s why russian enemy exceeds us quantitatively and qualitatively in tens and hundreds of times.
There was information about fights on the streets of the city. Do they continue or are we talking more about the suburbs and iron works defense?
It's been about iron works defense for a long time already, but there are residential neighborhoods that approach it.
Are fights taking place there?
Of course. Fights are constantly taking place on the defense line.
Your brothers in arms said that you even manage to counterattack the enemy.
Of course. In case that’s necessary and can bring us tactical success we use any opportunities. Mariupol battalion and garrison fights and will fight brutally and with self-denial. Fellows fight from any subdivisions, from the whole grouping, morale is very high, combat missions are being carried out. Our request for the extraction procedure is the request to save fighters alive and transfer wounded who are not combatants. As far as fighting is concerned, it will continue until otherwise is decided.
Why do you think russians do not allow green corridors and are simply trying to wipe Mariupol off the face of the earth?
I think that they are obscuring crimes, war crimes, committed in Mariupol.
We all know about mobile crematoriums. We know that after the world has seen atrocities in Bucha, russians are trying to destroy traces of the same atrocities in Mariupol, so that after we liberate it there would be no exact number of people who died.
What are your relations with official Kyiv? You mentioned that you contact with President Zelenskyy, but from some appeals of your brothers in arms we can conclude that communication is not very effective. What is it in fact?
I got a message from President Zelenskyy with an answer to my question this morning. The communication is in place, but it seems to me that our leader and his assistants need international help. I think that he has few answers for us, that's why he has little to say to us. All in all, he is in touch, he doesn’t disappear. In case we need to connect with him, we get it. But he can’t give us specifics, like anybody else can’t either.
Arms are needed, that’s understood. Larger deliveries from our western partners are on the way. In the recent interview the Secretary of National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov said that sometimes they managed to deliver help to Mariupol defenders with helicopters. It was mainly arms. If you may, tell us more about that. Is it possible now to break through defense and establish supply?
I think that that is a very sophisticated process and I don’t know if it has right to live at all today. The reason is that when such procedures took place, the defense region was wider and bigger, so we could afford to land a helicopter. There are difficulties with it now, because the defense region became narrower and there’s less safety, accordingly.
Andryi Biletskyi assumed that military unblocking of Mariupol is possible and that it will require around nine thousand personnel, two brigades, that have to be equipped with appropriate weapons. According to your assessment, is military unblocking of Mariupol possible and what forces will it require?
Mr. Biletskyi is at the level and in circumstances where he better sees the current situation, on a strategic and operational level. I can only talk about tactical actions that are taking place now.
How do you see the situation from the inside?
I haven’t seen the appropriate maps, intelligence data, I’m not aware of what’s going on in the area of Mariupol garrison defense. That’s why I can’t state the number of groupings needed to military unblock Mariupol.
russians announced the second phase of battle for Donbas. And, in fact, the question arises, what is primary – the defense of Mariupol for us and the capture of Mariupol for them or the beginning of a full-scale offensive? If we assume that a large number of the enemy's army is concentrated near Mariupol, and these are the forces needed for the offensive, we can say that today Mariupol protects the entire Donbas. The further offensive depends on its destiny. Or, after all, can they take a risk and open two fronts at once, in your opinion?
The situation can unfold in different ways, we can have different courses of actions. The concentration of forces in Mariupol can be an enemy's regional reserve or regional regrouping.
There can be a variety of tactics and ways to accumulate and deploy enemy forces.
I can't help but ask about civilians. There was information that about 400 women and 200 children are in the basements of Azovstal. But, according to other sources, there are many more people. And that's because there are a lot of basements, they're not always connected, and the military just doesn't know what's going on. How do you estimate the total number of people currently hiding at Azovstal?
According to the information that I have and what I saw with my own eyes, there are hundreds of civilians here, dozens of children with them. I can’t tell about thousands, as I haven’t seen so many people. Although this is very possible because the area is quite large and, as you say, the shelter are separated, so the number may be larger.
Is Azovstal the biggest place where civilians are sheltering? Are there any other places in town that require attention and immediate humanitarian corridor?
I think that the whole city of Mariupol requires attention and humanitarian corridor, humanitarian mission. And that should have been done very long ago, because civilians, the citizens of Ukraine, are left one-on-one with problems in the occupied city.
What is the situation at Azovstal with water and food now? How many are left?
The situation is utopian - no food, no water, no medicine at all. The situation is very critical.
President Zelenskyy said that in communication with the defenders of Mariupol he gave you the right to leave the line of defense, if you deem it necessary. If the wounded and civilians are evacuated, will you somehow regroup or stand to the last?
There’s nowhere to retreat, nobody is going to leave the arms. The people who are left here are going to fight till the end. We follow the orders of commanders and fulfill our constitutional duty to protect the state.
Regarding the evacuation of wounded … They are not combatants of international humanitarian law, they should have been evacuated, because they have the right to genuine medical care and support.
But the russian federation is not guided by humanitarian law. Unfortunately.
I’m sorry, but it is not russia that should act here, but the relevant humanitarian organizations, non-governmental organizations and anyone who is the guarantor of security.
It is possible that after your statements and this interview, they will change their point of view. I can't help but ask, what gives you the strength to hold on? Because the phenomenon of defenders of Mariupol today is stronger than even the phenomenon of defenders of Donetsk airport.
Infinite love for Ukraine.