hromadske met with the «ultras» of Odesa, Mykolaiv and Crimea near the advanced positions in the Mykolaiv region, where they hold a section of the front as part of the Odesa Teritorial Defense. Our meeting took place shortly before the start of active offensive operations in the south by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Most of the guys are already veterans. They gave several years of their lives fighting in the east of Ukraine, mostly in the «Azov» regiment. Some of their brothers and friends have already died or been captured in the battles for Mariupol.
The fighters show hromadske bodies of the so-called «DPR’s», who were abandoned on this part of the front by the Russians when they were retreating. The boys say that they would gladly exchange them for their dead comrades from Azovstal, but these bodies are of no interest to anyone yet.
Now everyone here is preparing for the offensive actions of the Ukrainian army. The motivation is high, because part of the unit's home is under occupation. None of us knows yet that not everyone will return alive from this counteroffensive.