Russian soldiers who defected to fight for Ukraine have said they are driven by a desire to overthrow Vladimir Putin’s “FSB dictatorship” and free their country from tyranny.
Two fighters – known only by their call names “Caesar” and “Quiet” – said in rare interviews from the front lines of Bakhmut in Ukraine that they defected from Putin’s army because the Russian regime of despots “destroys people.”
The men, who are in their 40s, fight alongside Russian soldiers in the 4,000-strong “Freedom of Russia” legion in Ukraine.
Caesar, who killed Russian soldiers on the battlefield, told media outlet Important Stories: “I came to understand clearly that the country was moving in the wrong direction and that Putin’s system – the FSB dictatorship – not only people physically but also morally destroys. .’
He added: “It doesn’t give people a chance to realize themselves and their civil rights.
Caesar, (pictured) who killed Russian soldiers on the battlefield, told media outlet Important Stories: “I came to understand clearly that the country was moving in the wrong direction and that Putin’s system – the FSB dictatorship – was not just people physically destroy. but also morally.’
Two fighters – known only by their call names “Caesar” and “Quiet” (pictured) – said in rare interviews from the front lines of Bakhmut in Ukraine that they defected from Putin’s army because Russia’s despot regime “destroys people”
Russians fighting for Ukraine in the Freedom for Russia legion are depicted firing artillery
“And this system, in order to maintain power, increasingly resorts to repression and leaves no opportunity for citizens to legitimately change power.”
He calls himself a Russian “nationalist” and says: “I have trained people from right-wing nationalist organizations who can overthrow the current regime by force of arms.”
Another fighter nicknamed Quiet — who previously served in the Russian army and fought in Chechnya — said: “We have been trained by the Ukrainian army
“They told us, ‘Thank you for still existing – [Russians] who have brains and a heart ready to defend [Ukraine]”.”
A construction worker who lived in Ukraine before the war, he said:[I have no emotions about the fact that I shoot at my compatriots]because there are normal compatriots and insane ones.
My job is to kick them out of Ukraine, to liberate Crimea.
“If they had been normal, they would have turned the Kremlin upside down, kicked out all that scum and lived normally.”
Caesar, who was born in the Russian resort of Sochi, is married with four children, said: “To be honest, I don’t want to get Ukrainian citizenship and I don’t want to stay here.
“I like being here, I feel good here, and my soul is calm here because I am doing my Christian military duty.
“I protect the people of Ukraine. But at the first opportunity I will return home, if I live, of course.
“I will return to Russia armed to free her from tyranny. I want to live and die in my own country.’
Born in the Russian resort of Sochi and married with four children, Caesar is pictured in Russia
Born in the Russian resort of Sochi and married with four children, Caesar is pictured in Russia
Russians fighting for Ukraine in the Freedom for Russia Legion fire artillery in Bakhmut
Quiet, married with two adult daughters and born in the Russian city of Tolyatti, said: “[After the start of the war] my wife and I started volunteering.
“When the Kiev region was liberated, we went there to help the wounded.
‘My wife brought food and clothes. With other men we set up a military tent there and broke down the battered roofs and installed windows.’
Quiet said he defected and was fighting for Ukrainian troops when he saw the atrocities committed by Russian troops near Kiev, saying it was horrifying to see the dead bodies of children and women in person.
Quiet was visiting relatives near Kiev when he saw the atrocities in Bucha, Irpin and Borodianka – and decided to stay and fight for Ukrainian forces.
He said: ‘[When we saw what the Russian military had done in the Kyiv region], I was shocked. We saw the corpses of civilians.
“I don’t understand at all how you can be a complete idiot, what a dissatisfied person you have to be in life to do something like that – to rape women and children.
“How can you even touch children. It feels like they released all the perverts from prison, who should have spent their whole lives in prison, and sent them [to Ukraine].
You understand Putin’s system. For twenty years he gathered lackeys and degenerates around him. Now we see the result of this artificial selection.’
Since Putin’s troops invaded Ukraine more than a year ago, there has been mounting evidence that the soldiers have committed war crimes. Russia is accused of raping hundreds of women and girls, killing and torturing civilians in Russian-occupied cities.
The Legion has been rejected by Russia as a public relations stunt, but has recently been labeled a “terrorist organization” by the Kremlin.
Russian sources identified Caesar as Maximilian Andronnikov and warned he could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted in Russia.