Zelenskyy urged to hold press conference on captured Azovstal defenders

She shared this information on Espreso TV.

“The rallies held every Sunday in Ukrainian cities serve primarily to inform the community that our loved ones are still in captivity, but they haven't led to any concrete results.

As a non-governmental organization, we initiated a press conference, which we want the President of Ukraine to head, along with representatives of the negotiating team who were involved in the Azovstal withdrawal. We need direct answers about who participated in these negotiations, what the terms were, and why these people are now excluded from the rescue efforts. We also want to know who headed this mission - there were representatives from the HUR (military intelligence - ed.) and a current MP present during the negotiations, and they returned to Ukraine when our relatives were captured. Later they were blown up there, and now we’re simply being told that it’s impossible to bring them back, that Russia isn’t even willing to discuss them," Hanna Lobova said.

The representative of the Olenivka Community stressed that they are awaiting explanations regarding the fairness of prisoner of war exchanges.

“There’s a misunderstanding here because the first exchange took place right after the Kursk operation - it involved 115 Russian conscripts. Like Commander Denys Prokopenko, we have questions about why this exchange happened so quickly and equivalently. If Russia had such a high demand for these prisoners of war, why did Ukraine return only 115 people? We would like answers to these questions as well,” said the NGO representative.

She also pointed out that the number of soldiers who were killed in Olenivka has not yet been disclosed.

“We’ve attended meetings and voiced our opinions. The head of the HUR immediately told us that forming a separate negotiation group was impossible, and that it's currently impossible to bring Azov soldiers back. When we ask about the seriously wounded, we’re given numbers that include all prisoners, even though we’re specifically asking about those who were blown up in captivity and released under supposed agreements,” she added.

• Earlier, Olena Tolkachova, the head of the Azov's Angels Patronage Service, stated that the Ukrainian prisoners of war are kept "on the brink of death."