Eastern Front in Ukraine from my perspective
Introduction
Hello, Community. My name is Viktor. I’ve been a chaplain since the full-scale invasion. My profession is Software Engineer.
For me, June 2022 began with a trip to Eastern Ukraine, particularly to Donetsk Oblast. Together with chaplains from Christian Rescue Service, we drove to Horlivka. Not just to bring deliveries to them- and we got a lot- but also to serve them morally and spiritually.
Our path went through Dnipro into a town in Donetsk Oblast with the name of an American megapolis. I’ve already been to Mykolayiv, in Southern Ukraine, which you can read about in this article, and now I am returning to my Homeland.
My perspective on my countrymen from Donbas
My feelings are conflicting. Those who fight us in the East are people, citizens of Ukraine, whose minds were clouded, and who are just cannon fodder thrown against our Warriors. Ruscists themselves call them “elephants” in intercepted communications. But I have enough to compare with. The genocide of peaceful Ukrainian people, that the ruscists are committing now, did not take place in 2014 on such a scale. russian civilians and military have simply gone crazy.
Hospitals and morgues of Krasnodon and Luhansk are filled with those who considered themselves the world’s second army.
Those who received RF passports chose their fate themselves. Since the first days of the war, I blocked even my sisters and brother, who themselves chose an rf piece of paper instead of citizenship in Free Ukraine, and a friend of 28 years… Although he is a real pacifist, completely neutral. And yet he received an RF passport.
Why is the “russian world” so strong in Donbas
The main difference between The East and Kyivshchyna, Chernihivshchyna, and other regions, is that there are many civilians near our warriors who support the russian world. There is always a possibility that your positions will be revealed and struck with artillery. This happened about a month ago when the boys’ location was struck with Grads. In March, during combat near Kyiv, we didn’t have anything like this at all.
I often ask myself: is it possible to counter propaganda and change the mindsets of the people who call the russian world into their households?
Donbas is a place where people are usually employed in hard labor jobs, in mines, factories, and other places where critical thinking is not encouraged. Where every day you’re supposed to repeat the same operations without thinking about what you’re doing.
Thinking back to 2014, I realize, that most people I know- programmers, scientists, businessmen, and others already left Luhansk in the summer of 2014. Those who remained were held back by their homes, elderly family members, or people like my russian teacher, who had worked in Russia and was married to a russian citizen.
Is it possible to change the mindsets of Donbas’s population
There is an interesting example of tectonic changes in the mindsets of the Federal Republic of Germany. Most were in a state of apathy and ruin after the conclusion of World War II. In the 60s, a trial of Auschwitz workers took place. Most supported Hitler and his ideology.
Here is a quote from BBC.com (translated from russian)
“The turning point was the Frankfurt Trials of the Auschwitz guards, the first major trial of Nazi criminals by the German justice system.
The hearings took place at the Frankfurt am Main Town Hall from late December 1963 to August 1965. Twenty-two defendants were tried, of whom only four were acquitted. Six were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The trial was a catalyst for a process that began in society as early as the mid-1950s.
“People representing the bloom of the intelligentsia of Germany were not afraid to go against the current, accurately and deeply comprehended the alarming situation in their country, pointed to the inhuman essence of fascist dictatorship and the danger of its oblivion.
West German society found the strength and courage to hear and understand its spiritual leaders (to the names of Adorno and Jaspers I will add the names of Peter Weiss, Heinrich Böll, Wolfgang Köppen, and Gunter Grass) whose views have had a direct impact on the change of the vector of mass historical consciousness,” he wrote.
It was also important that a new, post-war generation grew in Germany. Young people were free from their own personal guilt and that freedom allowed them to discuss difficult issues, often in the form of confrontation with the older generation. “
I emphasize that one of the main objectives of our country is:
- First of all, to successfully communicate to the population of Donbas, that the genocide committed by ruscists is modern fascism.
- Second, to change the vector of thinking on the territories, which always maintained a close connection to RF. Fundamental changes will probably take place in new generations in Donbas, who will have the courage to bring down the foundations that formed over 80 years and build their own, based on Western, democratic values.
russia already lost the battle over the minds of many Ukrainians, even some who supported its policy. I saw a graph somewhere that showed that support for Ukrainian nationalism grew substantially even in the territories where it had been low historically. russia already lost the fight over NATO borders. After Sweden and Finland join, NATO will be right under its nose.
In Ukrainian Armed Forces deployment near Horlivka
Medicine. Just a part of our load.
I had the opportunity to see how our warriors live, what they eat, and what they drive. Visit my Telegram channel, where I published a video unboxing of BMP-2 by the vehicle’s commander and a lot more.
Almost all the boys we spoke to have been fighting since 2014. Among them, there is a marine, a cyborg from the Donetsk airport, special ops, and others. All very interesting people, each with their own story. I’ll record videos of conversations with some of them and publish them on my channel. We weren’t let to the very frontline, because there was active combat there, which was very well heard.
We asked the warriors to sign my flag, which will remain with the CRS as a symbol of Invincibility.
After conducting several conversations and praying, we went back. Next time I would like to spend more time with them, by staying a night.
Everyday business.
In my work, I use a 2011 Dacia Sandero.
It’s a great car that has proven itself many times over. But a few days ago the owner asked for it back, so I had a choice- to remain without a car, which would make my chaplain work very hard, or to buy the car.
So I offered to buy it for $3000, and am currently raising money for it. I’m supposed to receive another car, but only in a month and a half. Eventually, I plan to give the Sandero to the UAF, or sell it and spend the money on things necessary for UAF. Please support me in this if you can. In hryvnias, I need about 108 000.
There are several ways to support me:
- Monobank 5375411500926550
- Patreon
- PayPal (by request)
- IBAN UA123220010000026207312567578
Below is a series of my articles on the war and my time in russian captivity.
- Article on the reasons I became a chaplain
- Article on the heroism of people during the war
- Article on my time in captivity in 2014
- Article on evacuation. From February 23, 2022.
Thank you for reading to the end. Everything will be Ukraine.
