The Minister for the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom James Heappey believes that the heroic defense of Mariupol on the territory of Azovstal will be included in military history textbooks as a key factor in Ukraine's success in the war with russia.
He stated this on the air of the Canadian public broadcaster CBC News, Ukrinform reports.
«These defenders have done so when writing books on the history of this conflict when studying the number of russian militant groups they have withdrawn, the operation could be seen as allowing Ukrainians to prepare to repel the offensive when it happened», Heappey said.
He added that now is the right time to save the lives of these "incredibly courageous" people.
According to the minister, the incompetent actions of the russians on the battlefield have weakened the country's armed forces by at least a third.
«We have witnessed a series of mistakes that have accumulated to the point that the russians have weakened, we estimate, by about a third», Heappey said.
Britain will provide Ukraine with another 1.3 billion pounds in military support and assistance. This was announced today by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. He also expressed admiration for the brave defenders of Mariupol and called on russia to treat any prisoners of war with dignity and respect.