ISW: Azovstal evacuation part of Russia's plans to announce full capture of Mariupol

The US analysts have named the possible reason why Russia agreed to the evacuation of Ukrainian defending forces from Azovstal metallurgical plant in Mariupol.

They are convinced that the evacuation serves the Kremlin’s plans to speed up the announcement of the complete seizure of Mariupol by the Russian army, Caliber.Az quotes the data of the US Institute for the Study of War (ISW) as saying.

Analysts, in particular, refer to the message of the Ukrainian Defence Intelligence that the Department of Information and Mass Communications of the Russian Defence Ministry is hastily preparing a press tour for foreign journalists in the occupied territories of Ukraine from May 18 to 21.

Experts note that Moscow could also agree to such a deal to silence the criticism regarding the unsuccessful attempts to cross the Seversky Donets River and the slow pace of the offensive in Donbas.

At the same time, ISW suggests that the Kremlin may refuse the exchange of hostages.

Some members of the Russian State Duma thereby propose to adopt a law that will prohibit the exchange of prisoners for the defenders of Azovstal, whom they look to accuse of war crimes.

However, according to experts, the Kremlin may ignore the initiatives of the State Duma or use them to sabotage negotiations with Ukraine.

On the evening of May 16, an operation began to rescue the servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from Azovstal. As many as 53 severely wounded servicemen were reportedly evacuated to a medical facility in Novoazovsk. Another 211 people were taken to Olenevka through the humanitarian corridor.

The commander of the Azov regiment, Denis Prokopenko, said that this was his decision, approved by the top military leadership of Ukraine. The defenders of Mariupol are planned to be exchanged for Russian prisoners of war.

As Reuters later reported, seven buses carrying Ukrainian troops arrived in a former penal colony in Russian-controlled Yelenovka, near occupied Donetsk. At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities assure that the operation to rescue the defenders from Azovstal continues.