Captured Ukrainian Soldier Shocked by Devastation Wrought in Donbass, Says He Had No Idea
"We must be ready to come to the liberated territory and start work immediately". These are words of Arsen Avakov, Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs about the fate of Donbass after, as they call it in Kiev, liberation. It's not clear what kind of work was he speaking of, but they promise to tell, in details. Today he announced the preparation of a new plan to regain Ukrainian control over the DNR and LNR. The plan should be ready by summer. Restoring Ukrainian constitutional order is among the aims, and, surprisingly, protection of the citizens.
But Eastern Ukraine knows perfectly well how the Armed Forces of Ukraine protects citizens. Moreover, the Ukrainian servicemen guess about the results of such work themselves. One of them publicly confessed in front of Donetsk citizens. A rifleman of one of the special forces units was arrested at the line of contact. He saw the results of his work himself after an interrogation.
Alexey Baranov has the details.
This is a serviceman of an elite marine unit of the Ukrainian Army. He is in the center of Donetsk, on the Avenue of Angels, in front of the memorial to the children, who were killed by Ukrainian Army artillery fire.
Vitaly Chmel, Ukrainian Army marine: "It's a shock for me. The biggest shock is the children. I am a father myself".
The tour for the captive soldier around Donetsk, which is under fire, continues in school №57. Five shells, launched from the positions of the Ukrainian Army, exploded in the middle of a lesson, leaving four dead and eight wounded.
Vitaly Chmel: "I haven't seen such an outrage. To bomb schools... I see this now, it's a big shock for me”.
The People's Militsiya of Donetsk captured Vitaly Chmel at the line of contact. The Ukrainian soldier, accused by Kiev of desertion, during the interrogation told, among other things, about foreign mercenaries, who fight for the Ukrainian Army in Donbass.
Vitaly Chmel: "I saw British uniforms. A black British uniform, their fancy vehicles, they drove to positions in the distance, fired there".
But to answer simple questions by Donetsk citizens turned out to be harder than talking to the interrogators.
– How could you? You destroyed our homes, killed my husband, my son. Why? We never fought anywhere, we didn't do anything. And you did this to everybody, look, houses are destroyed. Everything is destroyed, but I still come here and you are still shooting. Enough is enough!
– They tell us different things. They show us different things.
– They show you different things? And we see this!
The captive soldier admits that the army believes in the government's propaganda less and less.
Vitaly Chmel: "There are people who are ready to turn back and go against Kiev".
A criminal prosecution awaits Vitaly Chmel back in Ukraine. But for now, he'll have enough time to see the war, started by Kiev, from this side, through the eyes of civilians on Donbass.
Alexey Baranov, Anna Kolk, Vesti.