They were a powerful symbol of Ukraine’s challenge in the face of Moscow’s brutal invasion.
But on Tuesday, most of the remaining defenders of the Azovstal pulverized steel mine in devastated Mariupol stoically stormed Russia – some carrying their wounded comrades – after nearly three months of fierce fighting and bombing.
The event signaled the beginning of the end of the siege, which captured the imagination of Ukrainians and the world.
For the families of the soldiers, the moment was marked by a torrent of emotions – fear, relief, confusion, anger, challenge, but most of all hope.
“We didn’t know what was going on, and waiting is the hardest part,” said Lilia Stupina, whose husband Andriy, an ordinary soldier, was among the first in Azovstal as Ukrainian defenders returned to one of the world’s largest steel and iron factories. in Europe.
“My husband is well and healthy. So I don’t know where he is now, but I believe in the best, like, I believe in the best.”
Lilia Stupina, whose husband Andriy was among the soldiers defending the Azovstal plant, joined more than three dozen protesters in Kyiv, calling on the Ukrainian government to protect their loved ones after their agreed capitulation in Mariupol. (Murray Brewster / CBC News)
She last heard from her 25-year-old husband a week ago.
On Tuesday, Russia described the event as a mass capitulation. Ukrainian authorities did not use the word – they said the garrison had fulfilled its mission and that the government was working to withdraw the remaining fighters.
As Ukrainian troops – some of whom belong to the far-right Azov Regiment – left the plant, their wives and other family members staged a protest in Kyiv to draw attention to their plight.
– Do not worry. Just wait
Irina Kulibaba knows that her husband is alive because she received a text message from a friend and colleague in the factory.
“He’s fine,” the text read. “Don’t worry. No problem. Just wait.”
More than 260 fighters left the steel plant – their last redoubt in Mariupol – on Monday and were transported to two cities controlled by Moscow-backed separatists, officials on both sides said.
An unknown number of other fighters remain in the ruins of the fortified steel plant, which stretches 11 square kilometers in the otherwise Russian-controlled city.
Families of Ukrainian soldiers demonstrate in Kyiv after the agreed capitulation of forces at the Avozstal plant in Mariupol. (Murray Brewster / CBC News)
“The good news is that these boys, the wounded boys, have been evacuated, but Russia hates us and, of course, we didn’t know what to think and how to feel about it,” Stupina said.
Alexander Danyliuk, a former national security adviser to Ukraine, told the BBC early on Tuesday that the fate of the captured men was negotiable.
“Then they must be replaced by the Russian prisoners we have detained,” he said.
Will the soldiers be exchanged?
But Ukraine’s news agency said Tuesday night that Russia’s parliament intends to ban the exchange of prisoners defending the plant, saying members of the Azov Regiment are “Nazi criminals.” [who] it must not be exchanged. ”
Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the Moscow Duma, said Russia “must do everything to bring them to justice”.
Stupina said Moscow has been trying for years to slander anyone who stands up to defend Ukraine.
“Russia wants to think they are Nazis, but that’s not true,” she said. “They hate them because they are the most powerful warriors in Ukraine. And I believe, I know, that they are one of the most powerful warriors in the world.”
During the siege, Stupina communicated by text message with her husband, who, like her, comes from the northeastern Sumy region of Ukraine. She said that he is always positive and constantly tries to keep her mood.
In each conversation, Stupina says she is trying to put herself in her husband’s shoes.
“I always think [of] how is he feeling right now and i tried to dive too deep into his mind and try to figure out what [are] his feelings, his thoughts, “she said.
“He has no food or water. He’s trying to hold on [a] good [frame of] keep in mind to keep me inside [a] good mind, I think he’s fine. “
Irina Kulibaba, whose husband was among the fighters hiding at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, says she is trying to stay positive now that his capitulation has been agreed with Russia. (Murray Brewster / CBC News)
Kulibaba said he was also trying to stay positive while President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government negotiated with Moscow.
“I trust our authorities to help and do everything possible,” she said. “I hope that the Russians will not torture them, and I believe that everything is bad behind them, and the future is better than before.”
Almost two weeks ago, defenders of the plant said they felt abandoned by Kyiv and vowed to fight to the end.
Stupina said families have many questions, but now is not the time to ask them.
Kulibaba is not interested in the past, saying that life for her and her husband has been suspended since the beginning of the invasion.
“For the future, I just [want] to smell it and just hug it. This is the first [thing] what I want in this life, “she said.
WATCH The last remaining fighters at the Azovstal steel plant are handed over:
Ukrainian fighters evacuated from Mariupol steel
The Ukrainian military has suspended its detention at the Azovstal steel plant, the last stronghold in the strategic port city of Mariupol, confirming that 264 wounded soldiers have been evacuated.
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