Ukraine Offers to Hold 'Special Round of Negotiations' With Russia Over Mariupol

The offer comes a day after a Ukrainian commander in Mariupol said that his troops are facing their "last days."

The Iskra concert hall in Mariupol. Image used for representational purposes only. 

(Photo: Twitter/@IAPonomarenko)

The Ukrainian government on Wednesday, 20 April, proposed to hold a "special round" of negotiations with Russia to decide the fate of Mariupol, a senior official said, reported news agency AFP.

Mykhailo Podolyak, who is the top Ukraine negotiator and an aide to the president, wrote on Twitter, "Yes. Without any conditions. We're ready to hold a 'special round of negotiations' right in Mariupol."

"One on one. Two on two. To save our guys, Azov, military, civilians, children, the living & the wounded. Everyone. Because they are ours. Because they are in my heart. Forever," he said.

The proposal for the "special round of negotiations" comes a day after a Ukrainian commander in Mariupol said that his troops were "maybe facing" their "last days, if not hours", as Russia provided a new deadline for them to surrender on Wednesday.

While asserting that he would not bow down to ultimatums from Moscow, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has admitted that the situation in Mariupol was "as severe as possible" because Russian forces were blocking humanitarian aid from reaching trapped civilians.

Another important negotiator for Ukraine, David Arakhamia, stated on Telegram that he and Podolyak "are ready to arrive in Mariupol to hold talks with the Russian side on the evacuation of our military garrison and civilians," the AFP report added.

Moscow hasn't responded to Podolyak's offer for a "special round of negotiations".

Click here to understand why the port city is so important to both sides in the war.