CNN revealed the circumstances of the secret negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv on Azovstal

On site CNN broadcasting company received a material that reported the allegedly unknown and previously secret circumstances of the negotiations between Moscow and Kiev around the Azovstal metallurgical plant in Mariupol, which was surrounded by Russian troops in the spring of 2022 and from which civilians were evacuated, and then surrendered more than 2 4,000 Azov fighters (recognized as a terrorist organization and banned in the Russian Federation).

The article states that Oleksandr Kovalyov, a member of the Verkhovna Rada and a veteran of the Soviet-Afghan war, acted as an intermediary in these negotiations on the Ukrainian side. However, Russian military correspondents Alexander Sladkov and Andrei Kots spoke about this back in May last year.

From the Russian side, according to CNN, representatives of the GRU participated in the negotiations – Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseev, deputy commander of the GRU, and Major General Alexander Zorin.

The report says that Vladimir Alekseev is under British and EU sanctions in the case of the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, and Zorin previously participated in negotiations between the administration of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups. CNN observers believe that the participation of these generals in the negotiations suggests that Vladimir Putin attached great importance to resolving the situation around Azovstal and Mariupol, since Russia received an overland route to Crimea.

Kovalev, in turn, said that he used his contact in the FSB in Moscow, Valentin Kryzhanovsky, who was previously an employee of the SBU, but moved to Russia in 2014, to organize negotiations.

Later, head of military intelligence of Ukraine Kirill Budanov gave the go-ahead for negotiations, although he doubted their success.

Kovalev believes that despite the fact that the Ukrainian fighters surrendered, they saved their lives, so he considers the negotiations with the Russian side successful. He also added that this story shows that opportunities for negotiations between the warring parties – albeit narrow ones – are possible.

“Communication bridges are working, not everything is lost in this life, you can still be a man. Even in war,” Kovalev added.