Posted on22. May 2022, 19:27
During the war in Ukraine, the younger Russian officer came to the conclusion: this is not his battle that he wants to fight. He left the army.
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The junior Russian officer resigned. Now he is unpacking.
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In 2014, pro-Russian separatists announced Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. In the photo: soldiers of the pro-Russian militia in front of the Oschad Bank branch in Staci Luhanska in the Luhansk region.
REUTERS
A building destroyed by the war in the city of Volnovach in the Donetsk region.
REUTERS
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A young Russian officer tells how he survived the war.
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“People were dying around us. I didn’t want to feel part of it, but I was part of it, ”the officer said
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He left the army.
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It is unclear whether he will have to face any consequences.
The junior Russian officer resigned. Now he tells how he survived the war. “We were dirty and tired. People around us died. I didn’t want to feel part of it, but I was part of it, ”an officer told CNN.
«Paint the letter Z for Zorro»
The officer says he was part of a massive influx of troops into Western Russia. On February 22 of that year, he and the rest of his battalion were ordered to hand over their cell phones while stationed in Krasnodar, southern Russia, without any explanation.
That night, they would spend hours painting white stripes on their military vehicles. Then they were told to wash it off, he said. “The order has changed, draw the letter Z, like in Zorro,” he recalled.
«The next day we were taken to the Crimea. I didn’t think it would come to that, ‘said the man. When his unit gathered in Crimea – the Ukrainian region annexed by Russia in 2014 – President Vladimir Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
The officer says he and his companions were unaware of this because no messages were delivered to them and they had no contact with the outside world without telephones.
Mission objective unknown
Two days later he was ordered to go to Ukraine, a CNN station officer said. The officer claims he did not know the purpose of the mission. “Many have not understood what this is about and what we are doing here,” he says. He hoped for a diplomatic solution and felt guilty because Russia had invaded Ukraine. The forces rode northwest, towards Kherson. As they approached the village, a man with a whip jumped out and began to lash the convoy, shouting, “You’re all fucked up!” Recalled the officer.
“Some locals hid their guns under their clothes and started firing as they approached.”
He hid his face out of shame and for security reasons, because he was ashamed to be seen by the Ukrainians. on their land. The officer tells CNN that he was not the only soldier concerned or confused that they attacked Ukraine in the first place.
Consequences for the officer are unclear
Ukrainian intelligence reports that in several Russian units, especially in the 150th Motorized Rifle Division of the 8th Army of the Southern Military District, 60 to 70 percent of the soldiers were against their conscience.
Being away from the Russian army without permission is a crime punishable by imprisonment. However, contract staff have the right to withdraw within ten days of leaving the service and to explain the reason for the absence.
The officer talking to CNN had had enough. He signed his resignation. Even if he was threatened by his superiors. He’s with his family now. It is unclear whether it will face any consequences.
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