“The surviving equipment of the steel plant can be used to restore other Mariupol plants – given the need for the speedy restoration of the city, this would be rational and correct,” Gorokhov said.
He also noted that the responsibility for the destruction of Azovstal, in his opinion, lies primarily with the West in the person of the leaders of the NATO member countries.
"Physically, they destroyed one of the world's largest metallurgical enterprises with the hands of Ukraine - supplying weapons and spurring the Nazis who settled at the plant to fierce resistance under the guise of civilians," Gorokhov said.
At present, the main task is the need to retain thousands of professionals who "should not be retrained from metallurgists to unskilled workers."
“I think that everyone who wants to continue working in metallurgy will find a place at Russian enterprises.
This is another argument in favor of the fact that metal production in Russia will not decrease - on the contrary, related industries will develop, where metal and rolled products are needed, ”added Gorokhov.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin, during negotiations with UN Secretary General António Guterres, compared the Ukrainian military holding civilians at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol with terrorists.