A captured Russian soldier said that Putin’s armed forces have a special squad to kill deserters who do not want to participate in the invasion of Ukraine.
The 22-year-old said the soldiers were being threatened by a special “echelon” and kept in the dark until they saw the destruction for themselves, after which “the only thing we can really do is surrender.”
During the interrogation, filmed by the Security Service of Ukraine, the prisoner of war also said that his phone was taken away from him, so he could not read the news about the situation.
He said: “When we entered, we understood the situation, that we are not going to a peacekeeping mission, but to fight.
“There were questions to the commanders, like “what the hell are we doing,” but turn around and leave? We won’t make it home.
“Echelons in the rear, killing deserters … it seems that with the people with whom I spoke, we are all military men, they were told the same thing.
“There really is a squad that kills people trying to escape home.”
Adding that he would probably not be able to return, the soldier stated that the military “lied” to him and others.
A captured Russian soldier said that Putin’s armed forces have created a special detachment to destroy deserters who do not want to participate in the invasion of Ukraine.
Members of pro-Russian separatists walk near a tank in front of a badly damaged apartment in pro-Russian separatist-controlled Donetsk, Ukraine, yesterday
He said, “I understand… the trouble I got into at the place where I worked. I probably won’t be back. Well, not probably. I will not go back to where I worked, to the army.
“They lied. They threw a piece of meat at us. When people understood with their own heads… Our phones were taken away so that we would not see the news about the situation in Ukraine, what was happening.
“In every settlement we were told that, for example, there were no civilians there. But they were there.
The soldier also said that he was thrown into the fighting, and “they didn’t really care if we wanted to participate in it or not.”
A man walks through the rubble after an aerial bombardment as Russia continues its offensive against the Ukrainian capital, in the village of Byshiv near Kiev.
He added: “When we surrendered, after about 15 kilometers, we realized that the missiles that were flying were not flying at something military, but at civilians. Normal, ordinary, habitable places.
“While we sorted out the situation, they didn’t let us in. They told us that they would kill us if we returned. The only thing we could really do was surrender.”
This comes as Russia threatened the West that any military supplies to Ukraine would be considered “legitimate targets”, raising fears that the conflict could escalate and drag out other countries.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned the US that “the transfer of weapons from a number of countries that they organize is not just a dangerous step, it is an action that makes these convoys legitimate targets.”
The warnings came after Joe Biden personally intervened to stop the sending of Polish MiG fighter jets to Kyiv, fearing the move could lead to a “third world war.”
A Russian army tank moves on the outskirts of Mariupol, Ukraine, pictured yesterday as the invasion continues.
The crater was formed from an air bomb hit, which destroyed the cultural center and the administrative building in the village of Byshev today near Kiev
But Volodymyr Zelenskiy has criticized the West for its inaction, saying he “doesn’t see any bravery on the part of NATO” today, urging allies to become more involved in peace talks and offering to pay for more anti-missile systems. In response, the US half-heartedly promised to take “diplomatic steps” to help the Ukrainian government.
Zelensky, who said 1,300 Ukrainian troops were killed and 500 Russians surrendered yesterday, also said that Putin’s forces can only take Kyiv if they “level the city” as Kremlin troops gradually move closer to the capital and a conflict rages nearby. which jeopardizes evacuation attempts.
But there appear to be signs of little progress in the talks: Zelenskiy said the warring countries have begun discussing “concrete” proposals rather than just “an exchange of ultimatums,” though he said any talks should start with a ceasefire.
Puffs of smoke from burning containers after shelling in Vasylkiv, southwest of Kyiv, Ukraine today
However, the conciliatory tone did not find a response in the Kremlin, as Putin, after a 75-minute conversation with Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz, furiously declared that Ukraine was guilty of “extrajudicial repressions against dissidents, taking civilians hostage, using them as human shields.” [and] placement of heavy weapons in residential areas near hospitals, schools, kindergartens”.
Scholz and Macron pleaded with Putin to end the war and end the brutal siege of Mariupol, but the French official said he showed no sign of reversing his brutal invasion.
Russian armor is still slowly advancing northeast of Kyiv after several days of inactivity, and a military airfield south of the city at Vasylkiv has been hit by rockets, destroying a runway, a fuel depot and an ammunition depot.