DONETSK, April 14. /TASS/. The first batch of foreign sailors who were evacuated from the Mariupol port left the day before for their countries in transit through Russia, DPR Foreign Minister Natalia Nikonorova announced on Thursday.

"Those who have already been evacuated are now housed in Donetsk, they are provided with food. There are foreign citizens there. On our line, we are dealing with paperwork, because not everyone has passports, sailors' passports, since they remained on the ship. In order to return home - to the country of citizenship - it is necessary to draw up the appropriate documents. We are now working individually with everyone, collecting the documents that we have. Already the first batch [of sailors] left yesterday in transit through Russian territory. Some go home, some, who are citizens of the Russian Federation, stay in Russia," she said during a Channel One TV broadcast.

Ukrainian security forces from the Azov nationalist battalion detained ships, including foreign ones, in the port of Mariupol. On April 11, DPR People's Militia and Russian Armed Forces evacuated 47 crew members, including citizens of Russia, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Syria, and Ukraine. Later, the release of the crew of the Tsarevna cargo ship, including 14 Bulgarian and one Ukrainian citizen, which had been seized by Ukrainian security forces, was reported. On April 13, Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov reported that the Mariupol commercial port had been fully liberated and all hostages held by Azov aboard ships in the port had been released.