by Maria Marikian
[RIA] The Russian military, together with the fighters of the DPR and LPR, took control of the village of Peski near Donetsk, from where they shelled the capital of the republic for eight years. Many fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine surrendered. What they say about the situation in the Ukrainian army - in the report of RIA Novosti.
"CARRIED TWO HUNDRED"
Sergey Panin is from the Nikolaev region. He is 34 years old, has four children, the eldest is 18. They were mobilized back in March - they handed a summons at the checkpoint when he and his wife went to the market.
The father of many children hoped to the last that they would not be drafted into the army. Including for health reasons: "eight years ago I had an accident, injured my right hand."
Nevertheless, he was sent to the 56th Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
"There was a base in Zaporizhzhya. I brought food there. They cooked for us in schools and kindergartens. Then to the Dnipropetrovsk region, they gave an ambulance, two people and sent to Nevelskoye near Donetsk. In July they were transferred to Peski."
Panin's task is to take the dead and wounded. "I shouldn't have traveled along the red line (the front line - ed. note) on a gazelle, but I had to. In theory, people are taken out of there in a tank, under armor. We connect later."
He was in the positions of "Khabib", "Vegas", "Flagship" and "Ruby". For three weeks in Pesky, he transported five KIAs and six wounded. The wounded have contusions and shrapnel. Some of the dead were literally collected in parts. He was taken prisoner in mid-August.
"I was waiting for a rotation, hoping to move closer to home. To be honest, the mood in my village is different. Someone is for the Kyiv authorities. Others don’t care what flag they live under. The main thing is that people want peace."
As did he. By the way, he traveled to Russia regularly - to work in Moscow. Now looking forward to an exchange.
"WITHOUT EQUIPMENT AND WEAPONS"
Colleague Sergei Panin" Alexander Balt was taken into the army in mid-May. "Directly from home. Otherwise - a prison of up to ten years. They brought me to the military registration and enlistment office in Pervomaisk, Mykolaiv region," he says.
I have service experience: in 2014-2015, they were also mobilized. Then he guarded the ammunition. This time the task is the same. “Eight of us were transferred to the Donetsk region in the middle of the night. We didn’t know where we were going, we only understood on the spot,” the Ukrainian explains.
They were met by a senior sergeant, who gave a short tour, and who did not give any instructions. The arrivals dispersed to their positions, Balta was on the Yantar. And the very next day - on Saturday the 13th - he was taken prisoner.
"We were on duty for four hours. It was time to change, but there was no one," the soldier says. "A couple of hours later, one of ours went to the neighboring position for water, and they tied him up there. Then I was."
He 'expected the worst.' "Although now my relatives find out that I’m alive. They treat me well, there’s nothing to complain about, I hope to see you soon," Balta takes the opportunity to address his relatives.
He adds that he did not meet among the mobilized ardent patriots.
"Everyone has a job, a family - they just want peace. At first, like many, I thought that we were defending our homeland. But we were thrown like cannon fodder, right on the front - without equipment and normal weapons."
Because of this, the fighter clarifies, the units rebelled. There were many questions to the command.
"BY THEMSELVES"
“In fact, we were left to our own devices. The command suddenly evaporated somewhere. The only thing they advised was not to stick out,” says 50-year-old Andrei Kulai.
And so for two weeks, until they moved to another position - to check how it is equipped. Of the ten, four made it - the mortar was firing. The survivors were taken prisoner.
He also has experience - in 2014 he served in the National Guard. "Then everyone was more patriotic. They considered what was happening to be a fair and correct struggle. But now nothing is clear. If people want to live separately, let them," Kulai argues. "Sick, lame and old people were taken away from Nikolaev."
From the positions, the fighter admits, he expected more. "After all, eight years. But they were not ready for a long defense."
He hopes to eventually return to work as a machinist for a transport company.
DIFFICULTIES WITH THE EXCHANGE
Andrei Kruglenko in the Nikolaev region is waiting for his mother and wife. The notice was handed in in April. Some paid off - for 600 dollars.
"I didn’t have so much on my hands, I’m a simple hard worker. And I didn’t want to take risks," he admits.
First, he guarded equipment in Zaporozhye. But in the summer they were sent to the front. "They were supposed to replace those who were on the front line. It is not clear on what basis the lists were compiled.
I stayed under the Sands for a couple of days. We don’t know how, why were we sent there? There is no discipline – neither among the soldiers, nor among the officers," the fighter says.
This is confirmed by the Commissioner for Human Rights in the DPR Daria Morozova. All prisoners, according to her, are provided with food, clothing and hygiene products. Medical care is also provided promptly.
Now the Ombudsman is actively dealing with the issue of exchange. There is no direct dialogue between Kyiv and Donetsk, so the issue is decided by Russian negotiators. Morozova collects appeals from relatives of both Donbass and Ukrainian prisoners.
"In all cases, without exception, I explain the rights, the steps to be taken," she notes.
The last major exchange was at the end of June. Many DPR fighters, Morozova emphasizes, needed medical assistance. They were treated cruelly, in violation of the Geneva Convention. The human rights activist appealed to various international organizations, but there was no response.