Ukrainian businessman, President of FC Shakhtar Rinat Akhmetov was amazed by the strength of character of the commander of the 1st Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine “Azov”, Hero of Ukraine Denis Prokopenko (call sign “Redis”) during the defense of Azovstal, especially his calmness in the most critical moments. Akhmetov spoke about this in an interview with The Guardian, published on May 31.
“I was amazed by his strength and courage. I never heard panic in his voice,” Akhmetov recalls.
According to the businessman, he regularly called Prokopenko and every time he felt that he spoke without panic, despite the extremely difficult situation in Mariupol. Their last conversation made the strongest impression – 15 minutes before the defenders left the plant on May 20, 2022.
In this conversation, Akhmetov asked Redis what he could do for him, as well as for his fighters.
To which Prokopenko calmly replied:
“Don't worry about me, please take care of my people.”
Akhmetov emphasized that he considers Prokopenko legendary. He was struck by the fact that the commander did not ask for anything for himself, although he understood that he was going into captivity and was thinking first of all about his subordinates.
It was this strength of character and inner dignity that became for him a symbol of the defense of Mariupol.
“This is how the Heart of Azovstal project appeared, which supports the defenders of Mariupol and their families. I promised that I would help these guys. And I will do everything possible,” Akhmetov noted.
