Putin agrees to U.N., ICRC help to evacuate civilians from Azovstal plant - U.N.

Smoke rises above a plant of Azovstal Iron and Steel Works during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 25, 2022. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed "in principle" to U.N. and International Committee for the Red Cross involvement in the evacuation of civilians from the Azovstal plant in Ukraine's Mariupol, the United Nations said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Follow-on discussions will be had with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Russian Defence Ministry," U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement after Putin met with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Moscow.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by Jonathan Oatis)