Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence has published an interview with a man it identifies as a Russian helicopter pilot who defected last month – and brought his Mi-8 combat helicopter with him.
Ukraine named the pilot Maxim Kuzminov, who explained in the interview how he planned his defection.
“I got in touch with representatives of Ukrainian intelligence, explained my situation, to whom they offered this option: ‘Let’s go, we guarantee your safety, we guarantee new documents, we guarantee monetary compensation, a reward,’” the pilot said.
The pilot said he had discussed further details with Ukrainian officials and started planning how he would execute his decision.
He explained that during a flight: “I realized that I was close to the border. I relayed my location. He said, ‘Let’s try, I’m not far away.’ And having made a final decision, I flew at an extremely low altitude in radio silence mode. Nobody understood what was happening to me… I flew [para a Ucrânia]I landed, they found me and explained everything to me.”
The circumstances of the interview are unclear, but the pilot appeared to be speaking freely.
Contradicting the official Russian narrative, he said: “The truth is, there are no Nazis or Fascists here. It’s a real shame what’s going on here. Murders, tears, blood. And I don’t want to be a part of that.”
“What is happening now is simply the genocide of the Ukrainian people. Ukrainian and Russian. The motivation for my action was not to contribute to these crimes. Ukraine will unequivocally win this war simply because the people are very united. Before they weren’t like that, but now they are very united. The whole world helps them because, first and foremost, human life must be valued.”
The pilot also encouraged other Russians in the military to defect to Ukraine.
“You will be supported for the rest of your lives. You will get a job offer anywhere, no matter what you do. You will simply discover a world of color,” he said.
A CNN failed to verify the identity of the pilot. But Agenstvo, a Russian channel independent of Telegram, said it had found Kuzminov’s profile on social media and that he was an attack pilot with the 319th helicopter regiment separated from the Eastern Military District.
See also: Russia accuses Ukraine and promises retaliation after drone attack
Source: CNN Brasil
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