MP Viktor Medvedchuk, detained by the State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), recorded a video statement to the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, in which he asked to be exchanged for the defenders and residents of Mariupol.

"I, Viktor Volodymyrovych Medvedchuk, want to appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky with a request that the Ukrainian side exchange me for the defenders of Mariupol and [its] residents who are there and do not have the possibility of a safe exit through humanitarian corridors," Medvedchuk said in a video statement released by the SBU on Monday.

The special service also said the Russian invaders provoked "one of the largest humanitarian disasters" in Mariupol.

"The invaders are bombing the civilian population, blocking the delivery of humanitarian aid to the city, forcibly taking Ukrainians to the territory of Russia and deliberately destroying the city. At the same time, according to various estimates, about 120,000 civilians remain in the blocked Mariupol, and the fighters of the Azov regiment continue to defend the city and the 36th Marine Brigade," the SBU said.

As reported, on May 11, 2021, Medvedchuk was notified of suspicion of treason and attempted plunder of national resources in Russian-occupied Crimea.