Hot Mariupol: Soldiers entrenched in the Azovstal steel factory are likened to ancient Spartan warriors

A Ukrainian official compared Ukrainian soldiers who spent 83 days in Mariupol’s Azovstal steel mill to 300 legendary Spartans after they outnumbered Russian forces for months.

In a tweet on Monday, May 16, Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the President of Ukraine, said: “The 83-day defense of Mariupol will go down in history as the Thermopylae of the 21st century.

“The defense forces of Azovstal foiled Russia’s plan to capture eastern Ukraine. This completely changed the course of the war.”

The Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC saw a small force from the ancient Greek city-Sparta holding off a huge army from the Persian Empire.

The main force there consisted of 300 elite soldiers, who became legendary symbols of bravery and defiance. The battle is described in the hit movie “300”, starring Gerard Butler:

In Ukraine, several hundred Ukrainian soldiers fought against Russia from inside the Azovstal steel plant for 83 days.

On May 16, soldiers entrenched in the factory and Russian forces reached an agreement to surrender. By last night, about 300 Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered and been evacuated. However, the Ukrainian side did not mention the word surrender, but only said that the combat mission in Azovstal was over and the troops were ordered to evacuate.

The steel mill is the last point of resistance in Mariupol, a port city that gives Russia a great strategic advantage.

The armed forces of Ukraine said that the soldiers holding the steel plant prevented Russia from quickly occupying territory in the region, and gave Ukraine more time to deploy defensive forces against Russia in the area.

Ukrainian officials said that many soldiers in the factory were injured and they faced shortages of food, water and supplies.