This photo was taken in 2018, during my captivity. Sitting across from me is Sladkov, one of Russian propagandists who called themselves journalists for Russia24 TV channel. I was brought to him from Izolyatsia for an "interview." 1/3
They brought me there with a sack over my head and in handcuffs, and the same way back. I was warned that if I refused to speak or say what they wanted me to say, I should better remember that I had a mother, and there were still empty cells in Izolyatsia.
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And if you are still watching Russian TV in Europe, watch it through this photo.
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After my release, one of the most frequently asked questions was "Is it possible to negotiate with Russia?" I always said "No," and that Russia itself would show why not, which is what happened on February 24th. Now the same with the West.
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You shouldn't waste your energy on those who say, "Give away part of Ukraine and everything will end." A peaceful evening in Rome or in a café in Budapest may suggest such a thing. Russia will show them too that it's not just about Ukraine.
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Hitler could not be bought, intimidated, persuaded, or satisfied with a part of Europe "so that it would all end." He could only be defeated. But it took World War II to understand this.
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According to the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine, there is growing opposition to Vladimir Putin among political and business circles advocating for his urgent removal from power and restoration of economic and diplomatic ties with the West.
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At the same time, the political elite of the Russian Federation rely on the head of the FSB Alexander Bortnikov, who has already fell into Putin's disfavor after the enormous miscalculations in the so-called military operation in Ukraine.
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Above all, it was specifically Bortnikov and his special service who were responsible for the analysis of the mood of the local population and capabilities of the Ukrainian army, which became the two main miscalculations of the Russian Federation in Ukraine.
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So, I was one of those people convinced that Russia would not dare to launch a full-scale invasion in Ukraine. Until February 24th.
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I already experienced being held captivе in Donbass. Basically, I spent 2.5 years in the Russian concentration camp "Izolyatsia". I was tortured with electroshock as a Ukrainian spy; I saw women being walked through the hall where men were nailed alive in coffins.
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I am saying all this not to shock anyone but to make the point that not that many thing have left for me to be considered "impossible" in life. And yet I thought the invasion was impossible.
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