NV is publishing this journal, covering the first 100 days of the full-scale Russian war. It was written by a scout in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as his wife, recording the events and moods of both the front lines and the home front. The materials contained herein – photos, videos, and audio from frontline positions near Kyiv and in Donbas – are freely shared for the first time ever. The name of the scout and his wife, the names of most of the locations, and the actual handles of the soldiers in these recollections have been changed in the interests of security. The audio recordings, which can be heard in a number of sections, were created by the author of this journal directly while in position. This project is dedicated to military scouts and all the other Ukrainains who are defending this country not just on the front lines, but at the rear.
Prologue
At first, there were notes on the phone. The kaleidoscope of events that began on February 24, 2022 was so bright and colorful that I wanted to capture it all - both for history and so that I wouldn't get lost in the mad rush of life. Somewhat later, there appeared associations with the events described in Valentin Simyantsev's book "Black Zaporozhets," which took place 100 years ago with the Black Zaporozhets regiment, a military formation of the Ukrainian People's Republic. Many parallels became apparent such as how we fought our way through half of Ukraine, from Kyiv to the north of Sumy Oblast, then to the north of Kharkiv Oblast, and finally to Donbas... Just like a hundred years ago, our Cossack great-grandfathers, and now we ourselves, beat the Russians, and beat them handily. Even the tactic of "overwhelming the enemy with manpower," as it was with the Russians a century ago, remains the same today. The notes turned out to be concise and dry. There was no more time or energy to write. So later I diluted them a little with some memories. I also asked my wife to add something from her perspective that I would not have noticed, in order to paint pictures of our parallel lives, me at the front and her in the rear, and to also embellish my awkward expressions. So, the structure of this story has two parts; At the front, which depicts my impressions and observations, and In the rear is authored by my sweetheart. Following the example of Dorje Batuu, whose books I liked, I spiced up the text with links to relevant videos taken during our reconnaissance and artillery adjustments, as well as photos. Our struggle continues, so I filtered all of our materials, ensuring that nothing superfluous could be used by the enemy. Names and nicknames were changed, and the names of cities and villages were either changed or removed. We will distribute the full version, with dozens of full battle videos, names of comrades, and links to geographical names after our victory. All coincidences, suspicious moments, and politically incorrect remarks are a creative invention of this author's fantasy!
My friends and I were preparing for the invasion. We coordinated an elaborate plan for continued communications in case we lost contact. We signed contracts with our military unit and became reservists, and devised plans for evacuating our families to western Ukraine. I took my wife and son to our relatives’ in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast back in January… then persuaded my ex-wife to leave for western Ukraine with our children a couple of days before... I bought 4 canisters of gasoline, packed a backpack, and bought cartridges for my .308. The day before, on February 23, we went to the bathhouse with friends and chatted, once again discussing plans of action and defense for all the ‘what ifs’ we could think of. However, as the next morning proved, you can't predict everything. Although the preparation - both psychological and actual - came in handy, only the paranoid will survive, and this is only partly a joke.
AT THE REAR
We expected war, but not of this magnitude. After the withdrawal of Russian troops from the border in March 2021, we hoped that this time their deployment near the border was only for show and would also end with withdrawal, or at least that the war would happen somewhere in Donbas, but not in Kyiv. We started seriously considering relocating to western Ukraine after Christmas, but there was no need to rush there yet – so we stayed in Kyiv for the next couple of weeks. We went back to living our usual, "before the war" life. I made coffee in the morning, took our son to daycare, went to work, lit a fire in the fireplace in the evenings, and fell asleep in the arms of my beloved husband.
At the end of January, the war situation worsened, so my son and I took a train to my parents’ home. This did not impact my job because I could easily work remotely. My husband stayed in Kyiv because of his job, which wasn’t as flexible as mine. Besides, he was a reservist and could be called up at any moment. Of course, we were not happy about being separated, but our child’s safety was our primary concern. My husband visited us every weekend. We lit the fireplace again at my parents' house and went for a walk over the nearby mountain and river. The next several weeks were quiet and we even started to think that we had overreacted. Anyway, we bought a few canisters of gasoline, a generator, and some basic food and medicine just in case. On February 21, my husband left for Kyiv. The next time I saw him was in June.
24.02.2022
On February 24, in the middle of the night, I was awakened by Moses' call:
“Get up, the war has begun. Damn it, I'm in the village, will gather my stuff now." “Clear. Shit. Let's get in touch soon."
I open my phone and saw headlines about the onslaught of shelling attacks. I make breakfast. As I’m doing this, I try to pull myself together. My brain is still asleep and refuses to accept the news. Although, why is it news? I see dawn outside the window, it's quiet, and the coffee is hot... Blast! I fall to the floor. Now reality is indeed the news…Watching the explosions of cruise missiles only 1.5 km away, lying on the floor in my own house, looking out of my floor-to-ceiling windows – it was scary! A nearby position staffed by National Guardsmen was hit by rockets - and it was really bright.
The mobile connection began to fray. Where should I go? Alone or with friends, according to our plan? Moses is in a village near Kyiv. Lezo and Sirko took up the evacuation of families. The women resisted, waiting to go until the last moment. At least Moses and I did it ahead of time. And it helped a lot – hands are free, you can go to war now... --->THIS DIARY IS MASSIVE. LOTS MORE TO READ WITH PHOTOS HERE
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| REUTERS |
Russia is stepping up its air assault on civilian targets as winter arrives
The Russian military may be gearing up for a new round of missile strikes on Ukraine, and the goal is to crush the morale of the Ukrainian people. Kyiv urgently needs better air defenses, and this is another reminder that America’s weapons stocks are insufficient for an increasingly dangerous world.
The Russians are frustrated by failures on the battlefield and are lashing out by striking civilian Ukrainian power and water infrastructure. Vladimir Putin is unencumbered by international law and norms and could keep this up all winter. The human suffering—in the cold and dark—will be tremendous.
Ukrainians need more and better options to defend against these murderous attacks. The U.S. has been touting the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) operating in Ukraine. “Their performance so far has been very impressive,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said last month, citing a 100% success rate intercepting Russian missiles.
But Ukraine has only two of the eight systems they’ve been promised. The other six still aren’t built. The Pentagon said the rest will arrive “over the next couple years,” and the Army’s Wednesday contracting announcement cites a 24-month lead time. The Center for Strategic and International Studies notes four other countries have the system and a few are awaiting deliveries, but because of “production backlogs and limited fielding to date, few systems will be available for transfer to Ukraine.” That’s cold comfort this winter. --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:
+++++Russia-Ukraine News LATEST UPDATES: (REUTERS) (AP) (NY POST) and (WSJ)+++++
+++++Raytheon Reveals US Plan To Remove Anti-Air Systems From Gulf For Ukraine+++++
+++++General Staff: Ukraine's military repels Russian advances near 14 settlements in Donetsk, Luhansk regions+++++
Russian invaders likely running out of Orlan-10 drones – media reports
Germany to supply Ukraine with bridge-laying tanks, border protection vehicles
Germany to send seven additional Gepard tanks to Ukraine
UK Defense Ministry: Russia’s munitions shortage limits its potential to continue offensive operations
Minister: Ukraine receives HAWK air defense systems from Spain
Putin fell down stairs, soiled himself as speculation over worsening health grows: report
Russian Black Sea Fleet fighting capacity reduced by 15% since February
Ukrainian engineers scramble to keep mobile phones working
Ukraine Clamps Down on Orthodox Church Linked to Moscow
Writers: Russian attacks seek ‘erasure’ of Ukrainian culture
Ukraine Hunts the World for Parts to Fix Crippled Energy Grid
Russia rejects pullout from Ukraine as condition for talks
IAEA says deal over Ukrainian nuke plant "almost there"
Explosion rocks Odesa: 8 people injured, including 5 policemen
Ukraine receives $1.5 billion in budget support from US
Russia ready to abandon Zaporizhzhia NPP in exchange for transit of oil and gas through Ukraine
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