For five years, Sergiy Gnezdilov was a soldier in the Ukrainian army. With the large-scale invasion, the 24-year-old even launched a podcast where Ukrainian soldiers share their daily lives in the war zone. But ten days ago, he made the decision to desert. An announcement which caused a stir in Ukraine, with some fearing that his highly publicized departure would encourage other soldiers to desert. He denounces a mobilization “ for life “, with no prospect of returning to civilian life and says he is waiting for others to take over.
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From our correspondent in kyiv,
Sergiy calls late, he has just changed apartments. A procedure that he repeats every day, to avoid being tracked by the police. He also changes his phone regularly. Although it has been two days since he made the decision to desert, he has to undergo an urgent operation and the doctor comes to see him in the recovery room. “ He asked me what I had done. He took me out the back door of the clinic », he testifies.
It was this health problem that was the trigger: declared fit by the medical authorities, it was in private that he was told that an operation was urgent to remove a stomach cyst. “ Since then, I haven’t gone home, I went to friends’ houses, I spent the night at their place. I started moving from one friend to another to cover my tracks a little “, he said.
“ The rear must also prepare for war »
The young man also admits that he is exhausted. Having been involved in the infantry for five years, he can’t take it anymore. “ People are on the front lines without any rest for a very long time. I was there for 5 years, but others have been there for 10 years! “, he laments.
Because although the Ukrainian army has now lowered its mobilization age from 27 to 25 years, it is still seriously lacking in men. And above all, the soldiers who fight on the front regularly express their fatigue, exhausted by the too few days of rest, the corruption of certain brigades or sometimes undue orders. “ I think it’s time for other men to take up arms and defendUkraineinstead of leading a peaceful life in kyiv. The rear must also prepare for war. Each person subject to military duty must not only live his life, but also prepare to replace the exhausted guys who have already fulfilled their duty. And then, there must also be basic general military training for everyone, updating of data, which includes basic medical procedures. », he testifies.
The young man is a little overwhelmed by the consequences of his decision. Some accuse him of being a coward, of having abandoned the field, or even of being pro-Russian. He explains, however, that none of his comrades judge him. His brigade was content with a terse message on Facebook indicating that an official investigation was underway.
“ I am 1000% sure that I have a lot of support, because in my private messages there are hundreds of people who have not said anything publicly, who are afraid, soldiers who do not have the right to s ‘express. But who all write to me to thank me for speaking on their behalf. And in any case, if my country loses, I lose too “, he believes.
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