‘Frankly, they tricked us'

Russian troops tell of reality shock and low morale

- Luke Harding

Five Russian soldiers sit in a brick building. They are blindfolded: the latest prisoners to be captured inside Ukraine. A Ukrainian voice interrogates them. “Speak,” he says to the group’s Russian officer. What message would he like to send to his soldiers and to Russians back at home?

“Frankly speaking, they tricked us,” the officer replies, referring to his military superiors sitting in Moscow. “Everything we were told was a fake. I would tell my guys to leave Ukrainian territory. We’ve got families and children. I think 90% of us would agree to go home.”

The three-minute video was filmed under conditions of duress. The soldiers are evidently scared. And yet numerous similar interviews with  Russian captives have been circulating on Ukrainian social media channels, expressing similar sentiments.

Asked what he would tell his commanders, one said bluntly: “They are faggots”. Another phrase frequently used is oni obmanuli nas: they duped us. It is clear that a significant number of Vladimir Putin’s servicemen are demoralised and reluctant to fight. Some have given themselves up.

Others abandoned their vehicles and set offback towards the Russian border on foot, lugging their weapons and kitbags, videos suggest. These episodes do not mean that the Kremlin will fail in its attempts to conquer Ukraine, as its tactics have now shifted to brutal shelling of civilians.