"It is not terrible to die for your country." The story of Azov Barica - about Mariupol's defense, captivity and how the invaders were intimidated
Video of the day - can you tell a little about yourself? Are you from Mariupol? How did you get to Azov? I think it's very important. - I am from the Dnipropetrovsk region. He served as a "stress" in the National Guard, then signed a contract, transferred to Azov sometime in 2020. I was a tank, a tank. However, it turned out that when the fighting for Mariupol began, I was in the ranks of the infantry. That is, I ran, in the group of so -called tanks.
But later I was transferred to a group that was engaged in the cover of our tanks. - And why the call sign barik? - To the army, in civilian life, I worked as a bartender, and on the slang of the restaurant bartender is a barik. - I want to talk about what happened in Mariupol. They are often asked what was on February 24. And what was February 23? -We have already seen a lot of news through telegrams that will be serious. But we were told that everything was already 24th.
On the night of 23 to 24 [February], about 4 am at 4 am alarm. But before we were told nothing. Only through telegrams, it was known that something serious could be. - When did you first encounter the enemy? At first, they were firing and, of course, there were no direct confrontations. - In March. Somewhere in mid -March I was injured. - Your colleagues say one of the worst things is when you see the death of your brothers. - So.
- Has it happened to you? - Fortunately, no one died from my group, there were only injuries. But many brothers I knew were told about them. That is, I am already lying with a wound, one of my acquaintances is approached for me, they say, "You knew that"? He knew. "Everything, it's two hundred. " It was hard. - Have you been on azovstal with a wound? - At first I was in Mariupol. I was wounded, taken to a hospital in Mariupol. The next day he was fired, destroyed, and I was brought to Azovstal.
And then he was on the azovstal. - There were a lot of injured in the hospital at the azovstal, these were severe cases, there was not enough medication. You have seen these changes when something is at first, and then everything ends. Could you tell a little about it? - The conditions were . . . It was a regular bunker. It was made simply a medical small complex, a location. Ordinary rooms, a regular Soviet bunker. Everything was not sterile.
They just brought some equipment, chairs, tables so that some operations could be carried out. There was no place at all, people slept on the floor or on beds, but the bed is single, but on it two men lie, they were luminated by them. - And at some point, the Russians fired a hospital too? - I was wounded on March 15. Somewhere in March 16, they fired a hospital in Mariupol itself. It was until lunch, about an hour's tenth. - I mean the hospital in Azovstal.
The occupiers were reported, perhaps an aviation bomb on a hospital, which was on Azovstal. - They constantly tried to destroy it. Even when the fighters were in Mariupol herself. When the ring was closed, but we were still in Mariupol, it continued to attack. They dumped bombs, but they are not accurate. That is, there is a square, this square is sent an aircraft, it drops a bomb at high speed, and this bomb could not be hit in the hopper itself, falling somewhere nearby.
Although the airbags are scary, but not very accurate. - We could not withstand against the aircraft, because we had no air defense? - We had Soviet Igla Multi. But the planes flew at the height at which the plane could not be captured through the needle. There were Soviet masters, but they could do nothing against aircraft. They took a very high height, from this height they dropped the squares of bombs and rockets. They flew without punishment, so to speak.
- When did you understand that the city was surrounded? At what point did it become clear? - Somewhere in mid -March, when our arta was silent. It was already clear that everything, because Arta was silent, the BC was not brought. That's everything, the land. - Did you know that there were attempts to thaw Mariupol? They made attempts, but unfortunately, they were not successful. You were in full information vacuum before they got the Starlins.
- We have proved the command that a group of people is already going, looking for people, recruiting people, looking for equipment for Deblod. That is, we were informed that there would be a military debtoade. We were very much counting on it. However, the enemy strengthened its position around the city, so it was no longer possible. - And when you first heard about what could be the opportunity that Mariupol defenders will leave azovstal? - There was this information all the time, from March.
At first there was information about the Deblockade, then we were informed that Deblockrad was impossible because the enemy had strengthened very much. Then there was information that there would be three sides that would be taken to another country. And somewhere before the week before the order to be captured, we were informed about it.
- Have you worried about being captured? There were fighters who believed that the Russians could not be trusted, whatever guarantees were, that it is still very dangerous. - Of course. I did not want to be captured at all. However, it was an order from the higher command. And as a soldier, I must obey orders. I had no choice.
- The day when there was the exit of Mariupol defenders from Azovstal, which did you remember it? What happened that day? - We came to us in the morning, they shot everyone in the bunker, named the names, calls. They said, "Collect things, you will go out today. " We are: "Where"? "In captivity". All. They gathered a group, gave us a conductor who will lead us to leaving the azovstal itself. And we went to the exit with the wounded. At the exit, Russian troops met us.
With cameras - they were filmed, photos of us. At first, we, so to speak, were checked - our things, for tattoos, for everything. The wounded were not touched. Only those who are easily wounded or not injured were checked in detail. Then the buses and everything - to Olenivka. - Did you see the International Committee of the Red Cross? The fighter with the call sign mango said that the Red Cross said that "in three months you were exchanged for sure.
" Have you seen something, heard something? - Yes, during the loading on the bus there was a red cross. He gave special pieces of paper where you could indicate information about yourself, information of some close person with a phone number to be called and reported that, for example, your son or brother in captivity in Russia. That is, the Red Cross was present.
Yes, there were promises, they say, you will be brought to just two to three months from captivity, exchanging that we will be there under [protection] of the Geneva Conventions. That is, the Red Cross will constantly look after us. - Did the red cross call your relatives? - I did not specify the phone number because I was worried about my relatives. Little could have happened to this phone number, little could do. I didn't trust them much. And so I did not specify the phone number.
- You got into Olenivka. What was there? What did you see? Where did you get into what part of this concentration camp? - We were sent to the barracks. At first, while the first parties were, they settled with everyone at all. But then, when almost everyone was taken out of the azovstal, the displacement of the barracks, by units began. That is, some barracks were only for Azov, others - the Armed Forces, those for the National Guard. Barrocks are an ordinary two -storey building.
The toilet was on the street, ordinary, so to speak, a village toilet, just a pit on the street. There were problems with the water, a fire for extinguishing fires came, we took water from it. Our Azov unit occupied only two barracks. - When you came out of the azovstal, you have already been met by Russians with cameras, cameras. What did they say to you? Was there any communication? - There was no special communication. We were simply shown where to go and everything. They all carried out silently.
They stood, looked, watched us that everything was well. And they just showed: first go there, they will be checked there, then there on the bus. - Were there any interrogations? If we talk about the Azov, there is such an experience that they want to give some testimony against the commanders to say that they killed the civilian population, something was undermined. What experience did you have? - There were, of course. Also, their local, not Russian, but from DNR television came.
That is, the interviews were so -called interviews. But they were interested in the fate of Azov and the fate of such a unit as Medveda. It was most important to them. The National Guard, the Armed Forces, the SPSU were not interested in them, only Azov, Medveda. - What about Medveda? What is this unit? - This is a unit, so to speak, the right sector. One of. - What questions did they ask you about Azov? - They asked more provocative questions.
Type "Can you confirm that you were killed by civilian population?" To cover Azov with dirt. As if we are not any defenders, but that because of us the murder of civilians, that is, we are guilty of it. - Were there any warders who believed in the Nazis? There is part of the occupiers who believe in this whole propaganda, even in a nuclear bomb. When they seized the Chernobyl NPP, they began to look for nuclear weapons there. What is your impression? - The Russians have less washed brains.
They evaluate the situation, understand that we are ordinary soldiers. But here in the so -called "LNR", "DNR" the brains are washed. That is, propaganda on them is very great. They believe that among us, for example, there were black transplantologists in the azovstal surrounded by the organs, who cut the organs, sold them to America. This is all the war through America, through this measure . . . That is, the brains are washed as possible. But the Russian soldiers themselves are not true.
They [soberly] evaluate the situation. - In Olenivka you stayed for three days. Where did you get on? - I was sent for treatment to the Donetsk hospital. I picked up bilateral pneumonia before being captured. There was a high temperature, and I was sent with her to be treated to the Donetsk hospital. - How many people were there? What about staff, what treatment? - The hospital was ordinary, five floors.
It was once a rehabilitation center that they were reworked under the so -called military hospital. Our boys were up to a thousand, but it is not only Azov, there was also the National Guard, the SPSU, the Armed Forces - all units. People with serious injuries were taken there. It seems to be on the ground and second floor. There were already lying guys who couldn't even get up. The upper floors were busy more walking. Treatment . . . I will not say that it was very good for treatment.
This is more rehabilitation center - there were no equipment for heavy operations. However, the condition was maintained. That is, they will not worsen it, do not cure until the end, but will support it. - How not to get mad in captivity? Did you not understand whether you are exchanged? What will be done next? Of course, we remember how important the regiment of Azov is for Russian propagandists.
How did you deal with this psychologically? - It was difficult, but were distracted by constant conversations with neighbors on the ward about something positive. Their propaganda was constantly talking that we are not exchanged, we would not come out of here.
At first we were told that Ukraine considers us deserters, [President Vladimir] Zelensky has officially announced it, no one is going to change us, [as if] they want to exchange us, "though now take away", but Ukraine does not want to take us, so We are deserters, we are war criminals. Then we were told that we were waiting for a court in the so -called "DNR", that we are waiting for all the death penalty, execution. That is intimidated.
- And who told you? Aren't the hospital staff? - They said it at interrogations and during an interview, and the guards themselves told us about it. It was all in the ears - there will be a court according to their rules, and everyone is waiting for the execution. - What kind of positive did you try to talk to the ward's neighbors? - They shared their stories from life, some interesting, funny, and mentioned something. They talked about their families, for example. Something well tried to remember.
- When it became known that you can exchange you? Did you understand that this day was approaching that there are any preconditions for you to be exchanged? - There were no prerequisites. It happened in the middle of the night. At about four or fifth in the morning our ward wake up, names. Those whose names are named in the corridor. All. And we stand, wait, we do not tell us anything. Then they say to go outside in groups of five people. We are accompanied by these guards. There are buses.
We are sinning on buses and go. That is, we were not told anything before, they did not declare. - Photo collage, it seems to me that the Russians have been published. Then we saw him in the journalist Twitter Stanislav Aseev. A photo of the commander of the first battalion of the regiment of Azov - Oleg Mudurak was published. A hundred days have passed. Before that, he was a chunky man, and now we see that he is exhausted, losing a lot of weight.
So we understand that there are probably huge problems with how they treat our captives. Do you know something about how you behaved with prisoners either in Olenovka or in the hospital? We have heard about beating and torture. Do you know about it? - I can't say anything about Oleg. And about weight loss - it was still in Mariupol itself. When they were on the azovstal, the food stocks were extremely small, so they ate very little.
And you all the time on your feet, constant stress, you sleep little. The boys were very lost in captivity. In captivity, food is also to maintain [the body]. That is, you will not gain weight, but you will not die from hunger. Of course, I wanted to eat, I constantly thought about some goodies when he was captured. We constantly had to think about food, because I wanted to eat. But they did not die of starvation.
- What flavors have you finally been able to eat again when you got into the territory controlled by Ukraine? - Honestly: glazed cheese, jar of energy and cigarettes. This is what I dreamed of. - Azovs very often say that they had such a moment when during the fighting in Mariupol it seemed that, apparently, they would no longer survive this moment, because the huge forces were opposed by Russians, occupiers.
Did you have such a moment? Can you remember it? - Yes, this moment was 15-20 minutes before my injury. My brother and I stayed together, reflected from the group. The commander of the group was injured, he had a radio. We stayed with the twin together - he was a machine gunner, I was his second number. The shelling of artillery began, ran into the building. I heard that the tank engine operates behind the building. And he is not alone there.
We were previously informed that we would storm the infantry with tanks. We understood that we would get out of this building now, it is already hostile tanks . . . Everything, now the last battle, we will lay here. It was not scary, but it was so to speak, insult. Because there was no connection, it was not possible to even write a sms to your wife or mom "Thank you for everything, sorry, please I will love you. " It was unpleasant.
But it was easy to go into the last fight, because every minute you thought 50 to 50 - surviving, not surviving. He was ready for death, it was not scary to die. Because sooner or later I will die. Yes, though with weapons in his hands, competing for his home country. However, it was offensive that it was not possible to write down the last posthumous words to their loved ones.
- Do you understand why the Russians are so afraid of the Azov regiment? -If you do not take the power of special operations, units, for example, the 3rd, 8th regiments, Azov goes, if you equate with the National Guard and the Armed Forces, the most prepared unit, one of the most capable. This is first. And secondly, all the guys who serve in Azov are ideologically tuned, who is not scared to die for their country. Because they know what they fight for. Without fear, the guys who go for the idea.