“There is a feeling among the troops that this war will not end ‘tomorrow.’ We have information reassuring that the Russians are preparing a ‘preemptive’ nuclear and chemical weapons attack on Ukraine, so the feeling is that the war is far from having a deadline. Will we win? Sure, I’m convinced of that. We are very determined, we will play against them. He speaks to AdnKronos Volodymyr, a Ukrainian soldier stationed in Irpin and Bucha where he received a medal of bravery for liberating the two countries from enemy invasion as he is about to head to the epicenter of the clash. in Donbass.
“The mood among the troops? There is more determination and unity between us says the bomber, 36 years old, originally from Irpin, without hesitation if before that you still had some doubts about whether to shoot or not to shoot, especially now after Bucha there is no longer any qualms about killing the enemy, meaning someone who is capable of doing it.” Bucha is still a nightmare in its nights: “I was one of the first soldiers to enter the city when they was liberated because it was necessary to control the territory and defuse all the mines left behind by the Russians remember the terrifying images they saw all over the world were there, before my eyes, dead men , women and children with their hands tied, a woman on a bike with a bullet in her chest, a hanged woman I haven’t slept for days because it was really a mental blow, even now when I looking back, my torment comes back.
Compared to two months ago, at the beginning of the war on a global level, what has changed for Volodymyr “is that I’m no longer afraid of killing the Russians,” he explains. And he adds with disarming sincerity: “This war changed me. A little tenderness is probably gone. War is a very bad, terrible thing to do.” What would that mean for Putin? The soldier stops. “Now I think we have to liquidate him as soon as possible. Only emotions in me, no words.”
In the eyes of the young soldier who these days received an honor for firing a heavy weapon at an enemy transport unit the day after he joined the fullfledged military corps (“I’m not proud of it and I wouldn’t have wanted to get involved in something like that , but in the end I’m there and I do what I have to do”, he explains), many images are formed. He tells Adnkronos one thing in particular: “I was involved with a sniper in the elimination of a Russian general, and for three days we were ambushed between the branches Volodymyr tells us A fiveyearold child stayed with us for years, wandering alone after losing his parents who were missing under the rubble. We found him near a burning house and took him with me because he didn’t know where to go. His name was “Vova” (short for Volodymyr, n.m.) as was I. I still have his look in my eyes, I will e never forget it “.
How does Private Volodymyr see his future? “As a soldier, I’m not very successful because I have a lot of memories he says, almost smiling I often break orders: I’m just supposed to defuse the enemy’s mines and weapons, while I leave at 5:30 to help people find theirs to enter houses. People are afraid to return, afraid to find someone inside, asking for help from the military, who however have no orders to do this operation, so I am often called back”.
“I see my future in Irpin in rebuilding the destroyed structures he tells us I don’t want to fight on the battlefield, I want to rebuild my country. In the meantime yes, I got a job as a bomb technician and I do it with commitment. But actually I have a nice project to rebuild my country, Irpin, and in the next few days I have a meeting with the mayor to talk about it. But unfortunately I have to fight now: they have already told me that this is my job now. Everything will end, now the Donbass is waiting for me “.