MOSCOW, April 21. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin considers the liberation of Mariupol a success.
"The completion of the combat operation to liberate Mariupol is a success," the head of state said at a meeting with Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu.
"I congratulate you. Pass on the words of gratitude to the troops," Putin addressed the defense minister.
"Please submit proposals for awarding our distinguished soldiers with state decorations," the president told Sergey Shoigu at a meeting in the Kremlin on Thursday. The defense minister reported to Putin on the liberation of Mariupol by the Russian Armed Forces.
"It is clear that in such cases there is no other way, these are different awards, but I want them all to know: in our understanding they are all heroes, in the understanding of all Russia. They are all heroes," the president stressed.
On Thursday in the Kremlin, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu presented to the Russian president a report on the liberation of Mariupol. "The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and the forces of the DPR People's Militia have liberated Mariupol," the minister said. He noted that this city, which is a major industrial center and a major transport hub on the Sea of Azov, was declared by the Kiev regime in 2014 to be "in fact the temporary capital of the Donetsk region." According to Shoigu, in eight years Mariupol has been transformed "into a powerful stronghold and a refuge for radical Ukrainian nationalists.".