Three British nationals who recently traveled to Ukraine are reported to be at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol as part of the broader conflict. This information appeared in a Sunday edition of the Daily Express, dated May 15, and was cited by the publication as coming from a British volunteer who sustained injuries in the Donetsk region and was subsequently transported to Lviv for treatment. The volunteer said that all four individuals had previously served in the British Armed Forces and are believed to have gone to Ukraine together.
According to the volunteer, the three men located in the foundry were former members of the British army. He added that two of them reportedly served in Afghanistan. The group was said to have been dispatched to various locations across Ukraine shortly after arrival. His latest messages from April described severe conditions and a shortage of ammunition at the Azovstal site.
The situation in Azovstal
Within this context, Vladimir Dzhabarov, the First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council International Relations Committee, cautioned Turkey against assisting militants at Azovstal. The remarks underscored concerns about third-country involvement in the conflict around the Mariupol facility.
Earlier, Ibrahim Kalyn, official representative and chief adviser to the Turkish president, stated that Turkey was prepared to evacuate wounded individuals by sea from the Azovstal metallurgical plant in Mariupol. He explained that evacuees would depart Azovstal and be transported to the port of Berdyansk, then transported to Istanbul by ship. He noted that Moscow reportedly did not accept these conditions.
Kalyn also claimed that Turkey would not impose sanctions on Russia and would be willing to host Russian citizens for the summer holidays. He described Turkey as a key partner in the Middle East and urged Ankara not to interfere in the Azovstal matter or harm its standing.
Turkish involvement in the Ukrainian conflict has been described as non-interventionist in official terms, with analysts noting broad strategic diplomacy rather than direct action. In remarks collected by the portal ura.ru, Dzhavarov asserted that there is no civilian presence inside Azovstal and that any militants presenting a white flag would be transported to hospitals for treatment. Individuals who were not injured or attempting to escape, he suggested, would be taken to detention to begin investigative procedures. He framed the issue as one that concerns Russia directly.
Meanwhile, Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya, urged the Turkish president not to facilitate the evacuation of wounded soldiers from Azovstal. He cited concerns about the Azov battalion’s history of statements that he perceived as denigrating Islamic values, signaling potential religious and political sensitivities surrounding the operation.
Public statements attributed to Kadyrov urged Recep Tayyip Erdogan not to be misled by individuals seeking to avoid punishment. The remarks were disseminated via Kadyrov’s Telegram channel and reflected ongoing tensions in regional responses to the conflict.
Since February 24, 2022, Russia has been conducting a special military operation in Ukraine. On April 21, President Vladimir Putin, in a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, described the assault on the Azovstal plant as inappropriate and gave orders to seal off the industrial area and discontinue actions there. By May 4, Shoigu reported that the remnants of the Ukrainian military group remained dispersed along the perimeter of Azovstal, while Russian forces continued to urge them to lay down arms and to allow civilians to depart safely. The situation remained fluid as negotiations and military actions continued to unfold around the facility.