Last month, Moscow claimed control of Mariupol. (Russian Ministry of Defense handout)

On Thursday, Russia's defense ministry said that 1,730 Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered this week at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, a Ukrainian port city in the south.

"Over the past 24 hours, 771 militants of the Azov nationalist regiment surrendered," the ministry said in its daily briefing on the conflict.
"In total, since May 16, 1,730 militants have surrendered, including 80 wounded."#Azovstal #Russia #Ukraine️ pic.twitter.com/1qxVoUTXZ4
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 19, 2022

"Over the past 24 hours, 771 militants of the Azov nationalist regiment surrendered," the ministry said in a briefing before the conflict.

"In total, since May 16, 1,730 militants have surrendered, including 80 wounded," it added.

The ministry released a video of the surrendered soldiers walking out of the steel plant, some of the soldiers were clearly wounded while others were walking on crutches. Russian soldiers patted them down as they inspected their bags before exiting.

The ministry said that the soldiers were taken to a hospital in territory controlled by Russia in eastern Ukraine.

Kiev will be seeking a prisoner swap for fighters that have surrendered at Azovstal - however, Moscow will have to provide an affirmation.

900+ Azov militants surrender in Mariupol

Around 900 Ukrainian militants from the Azov neo-Nazi battalion have surrendered at the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol since May 16, according to Russian defense ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov.

"Militants of the nationalist Azov battalion and Ukrainian soldiers blocked at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol continued to surrender," Konashenkov told reporters.

Earlier, Russia's Ministry of Justice announced that the Supreme Court of Russia will consider on May 26 recognizing the Ukrainian Azov regiment as a terrorist organization.

The Azov battalion: openly neo-Nazi, unlimited international support

The Azov battalion is a part of the Ukrainian National Guard - a wing of the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The battalion flaunts is Nazism very openly, and is even notoriously known for a video in which they crucified a soldier, tortured him, and burnt him alive.

The United States and Canada over the years have aided the neo-Nazi units with weapons and training, strengthening their presence in Ukraine.

In early March, the Russian envoy to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said that Zelensky has shown his inability to withstand radicals in Kiev, emphasizing while adding that the real power in Ukraine belongs to extremists and Nazis, who have their own agenda.