Prisoner exchange could release Mariupol defenders - Podolyak

He said this on air during the Ukrainian nationwide telethon, RBC Ukraine reports.

"In my opinion, there is a single mechanism under which we (the negotiating delegation) and someone from the Russian side will be there. Then we say that this is an exchange, for example. We would hand over a certain number of people, prisoners, and bring our own people home", Podolyak said.

He added that people defending Mariupol will not give up their positions or surrender their weapons.

"They will definitely not hand over their weapons, they understand what symbolism is, what symbolism is for the Russian Federation. We suggest: let’s come, these guys will leave with their weapons and we will pick them up and take them home", the presidential adviser added.

Podolyak noted that the invading Russian forces want to use the siege of Mariupol to bring Ukraine’s defense forces to their knees.

"Russia thinks that no one understands this, but the world does. They don’t just want to kill people, they want to show them on their knees, record some propaganda videos and play them for their internal needs. This will definitely not help them win the war, they won't win it at all. It certainly won't help to create tactical victories and show them for internal propaganda", he said.