AP news agency spoke with Ukrainian soldiers who have been at the front in the Donbas. They fought in cities like Severodonetsk and Lysychansk which were almost completely destroyed. They watched as friends were killed, injured or passed out under the ongoing bombardments.
“They bombed us every day,” said Lieutenant Volodymyr Nazarenko, who fought in Severodonetsk. “That was a barrage on every building. The city was systematically shut down.” He is convinced that Ukraine will defeat Russia and recapture all the lost territories. “We descend from the Cossacks”, says platoon commander Maria. “We are free and brave. It’s in our blood. We fight to the end.”
Other soldiers are more pessimistic. “On TV, the images of the front, solidarity and the army look beautiful, but the reality is different,” says Oleksiy. His unit lost 150 men in the first three days of fighting. The wounded could sometimes only be removed from the front after two days.
The Russian fire was sometimes so intense that he and his mates couldn’t stand upright in the trenches. “The commanders don’t care if you are mentally broken. As long as your heart is still beating and you still have your arms and legs, you have to go back to battle.” Oleksiy was seriously injured. He does not believe that new weapons from the West will make a difference.
Two other soldiers with whom the AP spoke worked in the office. They had to go to the front as soon as basic training was over. They were amazed at the “terrible” organization there and the “illogical decision-making”. According to them, there were many soldiers in their battalion who refused to fight.
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