The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on the air of the Italian TV channel Rai 1 that he was ready to talk to Putin without intermediaries on the terms of dialogue, not ultimatums.
Zelenskyy said Putin would not be able to save face. Now he needs to think about how to save the state. He also criticized French President Macron for offering Ukraine to cede sovereignty.
"He [Macron] wanted to find results in mediating between us. He did not find any. And not from our side. He did not find them from the Russian Federation. And to offer me some things related to the concessions on our sovereignty in order to save Putinʼs face... I think this is not very correct," the President said.
Zelenskyy said that three countries are currently working on an attempt to evacuate the Ukrainian military from Azovstal.
"We took civilians out of the factory, now there is a question about the wounded and the living. And, to be honest, we do not want to leave the killed people there, because their families are waiting for them… We passed information to Russia, we even used the mechanism of involving a third country. Israel, Switzerland and Turkey are working on this today," he explained.
- Negotiations between the Ukrainian delegation and the Russian delegation took place on February 28, March 3 and 7, 2022, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
- Occupying troops in Mariupol continue to bomb Azovstal every day.
- Russian troops have destroyed Azovstalʼs second underground hospital. Wounded defenders have a very difficult situation — even the lightly wounded have to amputate limbs or die slowly.
- The Ministry of Defense stated that the military unblocking of Mariupol is currently impossible. The Azov Regiment is convinced that it is possible to break through to Azovstal.
- Defenders of Azovstal cannot surrender, because for the Russians and Russian propaganda it will be a "gift." The Russians will definitely kill the Azovs. At the same time, the military at Azovstal has orders to keep the defense. The fighters, in their own words, will "stand as long as necessary."