what did the city of mariupol look like, how did you remember it? well, eh, i do, eh, i’ll tell you right away , i woke up in the morning, i managed to sleep a little there, literally somewhere, i don’t know , there for an hour or two, it was already a little light, because there, until then, all the work was done there, roughly speaking , night has already come, we took up positions that night, and yes, we took up positions until evening. and well, in the morning, we already had this fight, by the way, that's how it was with us, and i don't remember the city , well, it's just gray like this, something, a pile of dust, everything is destroyed, on the street, well, break the asphalt, power grids are lying down, that is, tram tracks are broken, well, it's just a pile of stones and metal, tattered.

were there people on the streets at that time? yes, there were people, civilians, people came out, sometimes , they asked us to come in, they asked whose water we have, we shared it with them, let them down, because we were several floors up there and the door was ours they blocked it so that no one could find us, or rather enter, and when we saw that someone was approaching us, well, we already checked, i went down there with guys, we opened the door, looked, then the civilians, well, visually understood that they did not pose any threat, they asked what they could eat there, shared what we had, then let the food go and everything, oleksandr, looking back at the period and on your participation in the blockade of mariupol, please tell me,

was there a chance to liberate the city then, what was needed for that, what did we lack in that period, what was lacking, you understand, i am simply not a military expert to to fully assess this situation, that's why i hardly i will be able to answer this question correctly, but there were at least minimal chances, i think that it is azov-steel? about which those who want to talk about, those who don't want to forget, when you were stranded, from april 15 to somewhere on april 16, here i was at this plant, we made our way through the whole city, we walked , on foot, completely the whole city, to this combine, that’s it, and then we stopped at

one of the enterprises, it was also in such a broken state, we rested a little and somewhere in the evening already began to cross to closer to azovstali himself, why did you go there, what were you supposed to do there? entrenched there, and because it no longer made sense from a command point of view to hold the place itself, it was necessary to hold on to this compound, i think that was a decision made in order to preserve as much as possible... the number of people, actually in this city, city, because azovstal is such a small city in mariupol, you stayed for almost a month, yes, i think a little more than a month for a few days, well, from the 15th, the departure for zazastali began from may 16 to 20, i was somewhere on the 20 closer by the 20th, i seem to have left my position, i had one of the advanced positions.

we waited until almost everyone left and we were almost the last to leave , this month you spent there in azovstal was a very difficult month, how did you eat, how did you live, because we are not talking about normal living conditions, well ate, well, how can i say that, i think that it is not critical. well, but it's not enough, we would like more, well, we are starting from the fact that no one knew how long we would be there, and therefore it was allocated with consideration, well critical situation, here, there was enough food so that there was no, no collapse from hunger, i think that it was enough, in principle, there was water, well, with water , the failure started a little, it started towards the end. because there was some kind of soda there, well, it

was all carbonated water, in plastic bottles, and it was very difficult to find the bottom, so they already started drinking technical water. to the extreme, in my position, we were already drinking technical water at that time, in your position it was mainly, the vast majority, it was the military, or were there also civilians? on one of i had civilian positions, some of them were then simply demolished, from the tank and well, we held back, repelled several assaults, when we realized that there was no point in storming it, because they were constantly repulsed, then... they just leveled the tanks and that's all, by the evening we fell asleep, there was something like a small basement there, they were hiding in one part of the civilian area, here, in the other, well, we closed in,

here, well, we fell asleep, we dug out, in principle we came out okay, but how did you learn about the decision to go to an honorable prisoner of war? fighters who held, courageously held the defense of azovstal , they had to leave, it was the decision of the command, how did you find out about it, ah, we came to ours, such an improvised ksp, here, there they gave certain tasks, well, they told some news and that's all like that, just one of the days when i went there, it seems that either i or one of my... brothers came there and said that this is such a situation, that we will leave there as an honorable prisoner, well yes, to be honest, i did not really understand what it looked like, what an honorable capture meant, how it would be to look, well, knowing that what was there would

be, in principle, i would hardly have agreed, and if they did not agree, what were the chances of survival and what could be done? in that situation, in order not to go into this temporary captivity, the chances of survival, well , they were very, very, very small, well, i think that there is always a chance to survive, even being in captivity, there is also a chance to get out and survive, just unfortunately , they are small, you said that when you were traveling, you were sent to mariupol, you were not allowed to tell your relatives where exactly you were going, when they found out where how did they find out about the honorable prisoner when i arrived in mariupol, the first day, they found out, i wrote, i just took my phone with me, another, registered, well, while still in kyiv, and then through the internet, there through starlik , i just connected to wi-fi,

wrote to my relatives that i was in mariupol , who was waiting for you here, parents, yes, what was their reaction when they found out that their son oleksandr is now in the womb, well, to be honest, they weren't very happy, apparently may 20, if i'm not mistaken, is the last day exit from azovstal, because it was such a long process, the wounded were taken out, then the rest of the soldiers, what did you feel then, you defended azovstal so bravely and so fervently, tried to recapture mariupol, and then you understand that you... need to surrender to the enemy, it is humiliation, it is an insult, what emotions? well, uh, i wouldn't say that it was a direct humiliation, but it was a little insulting, to say the least, because i believe that those people who

then mocked us in captivity never in their lives it would not have come to that to take us prisoner, and i am sure that not one of them would have had the strength or the spirit to do something like that, and i think that if it had not been for this order, they would have been gnashing their teeth for a long, long time, about those people who work in those prisons, where our brave, heroic soldiers are received, what can be said about them, in general, these are people, well, i can say that they become people. but unfortunately, their system, their, what they do, i don't know , whether it's genetic, they just hate us for some reason, but it happened indeed, people who sympathized, well, it happened

like this, and how did they show their sympathy? well, there are some moments that i would not like to tell, but there were such and such cases, and they ... helped a little, and it was easier to bear, and i am just trying to find answers to some questions for myself, and i i can't understand what emotions are inside... a person, what drives him, when he gets pleasure from seeing another person suffer, seeing that he is in pain, that he is uncomfortable, these are some kind of maniacs, these are some work, well, this is a normal mentally and physically healthy person, she is not capable of causing pain to others, i think that simply at some point these scientists got very, very much power, more than they had, simply, although in

principle, this power is very dubious over the captives, they understood that we have no rights at all, we, they understood that no one will protect us, and no public organization of any kind will reach us and they are free to do whatever they want with us, that's it some of them really decided that they could somehow be realized in this way and raise your self-esteem there in the eyes of your colleagues there or in your own eyes, or realize some of your sick childish fantasies there, well, i don't see anything else, because i even heard how some of them there, this is what the government is doing to us , well, that is, they were given a little more power in their hands, i mean, than they had, and they are already beginning to abuse the... captives, tell me, please, when you realized that that captivity had nothing

to do with such in a beautiful word, honorable captivity, that this is a real prison, where our heroes will not be treated with honor, i think that at first i understood that this was complete nonsense about the so-called honorable prisoner, i understood that it was so smooth there and as they say, nothing...' there will be, absolutely, at no time, here, well, in principle, i was adjusting the worst that can happen, because, well, i think in this situation it was better to set yourself up for something so very, very bad and then not be disappointed in it, here than, then yes, oh, and i wish it was better, well better i can't, it's captivity, there won't be anything better, i talked to guys who were the same at zovstal, and some of them talked about

the fact that instead of being forced, they were allowed to read literature, of course propagandistic, it was exclusively russian literature, they were forced to study the national anthem, was there anything similar in relation to you, of course, well they only gave, not literature, they gave us to listen to some songs, well, it is understandable that there are still some old soviet ones, they are still somehow connected, but there, of course, the repertoire from the lnn, the dpr, there, something related, there, i say, it's just complete hochma, he wants, he wants to stuff his face therefore, to that person, just for this repertoire, i, i will say so, exactly, well, it's just a cap, such an impression that a person wanted to compose something like that, the worse, the better. that's something , well, it honestly makes me laugh, two claps, three waves, yes, and there you have to hear it just to

understand what it is. what did they say about ukraine and whether they plan to release you for exchange, or did they undermine this trust in ukraine? blew up, of course, and said that you are no longer needed here, no one will change you, that we have almost captured the whole territory, that's the only question there. time we approached kyiv again, well, again , to believe this information that they approached kyiv there, captured some territory there, i already saw how they captured mariupol, and how they captured azovstal, i really, really very dubious information in terms of the fact that they advanced somewhere, very, very far, as they said there, at that time in principle, as far as i understand it , kharkiv region. was already liberated there, well , on the contrary, many territories were already liberated, yes

it happened that your captivity was in several places, and one of these places was the olenivka colony, so you were there for a short time, no, i was there for four days, or three or four days , literally, and we stayed there before the terrorist attack from 28 on july 29, and for what purpose were you transferred from one colony to another, i definitely can't with this... because, well , this side probably had some visions, why they gathered a certain group of people and transported them to taganrog. as for olenivka, how did you find out about the terrorist attack, the killing of ukrainians, i didn't even know about it all the time, you found out already after the exchange, so what you felt at that second, what i felt, well, there were those that

you knew, yes, yes, there were several people who died that i knew very well. well, anger , of course, and it doesn't go away even now, i can't say more such emotions, it's very difficult to describe, september 2022, the 21st, if i'm not mistaken, the day you were returned to ukrainian. territory, this is the moment of return, did you understand where you are going and that in a few days, hours you will be on your land, and i where we are going, no, i did not understand but, to be honest, once again, they talked about the fact that we will be somewhere, well, i have already heard

that they say that you are going on an exchange, they from zelenivka, where we were leaving, also said that they are taking us on an exchange, that it was very doubtful that there would be any exchange there in three days, this, i believe, was impossible, by the way, this was the day when you and the other brothers were being returned, which they wanted to do in the first minute, when they already understood , who were not deceived, brought home, you are here now, well, when i already set foot, well, i went to our territory, the first thing i wanted to smoke, although i so ee? smoked, i only smoked like that in azovstal, we still smoked, but at that time i really wanted to smoke, so i smoked so much that my head started to spin, there i started smoking one thing after another, and when something like this happens exchange, relatives who see their husbands

, lovers, brothers, girls who also return, they are of course infinitely... happy, those relatives who are still waiting and have not seen their relatives at home, they ask questions, when will they return ours, why not them, or do you understand the principle of this exchange, the fact that you are here is very good, but you understand that there are people who ask why not others, you were asked such questions, i was not, well, i know that such questions are asked to everyone, that's why. even when there, again, we already got on the bus, we started there, i already started to put some faces, here, and after arriving in chernihiv, well, there on the bus beforehand, i really called my relatives there, while i

i got to the hospital in chernihiv, talked with some people there, and that's how it was there in the conversations of some people , such questions slipped through when i already started talking with one after another acquaintances there, really there, well, i understand the relatives of other people there, that they really, really wait for theirs, and they are emotionally unstable and can, can well, to say such things that seem to be unpleasant, but i think that this is normal, you can understand them, because they do not see... those they love, or they periodically see the footage that is shown on russian television and from them the ends of the hair, but we understand that you are not here either why, you weren't at the resort, you didn't leave that territory arbitrarily at the moment when you wanted, so it happened that someone was lucky, and someone, unfortunately , not yet, and i don't know if you saw the video ,

which is currently active on social networks, the video was made by our colleague. denys koshelnyk, koshelnyk tv, he walked through the center of kyiv, talked with kyivans and guests of the city and asked them what they know about mariupol, the deblockade of mariupol, azovstal, about the prisoners, they haven't seen this video , i don't, i'll tell you frankly, i was indignant, indignant, why, because my 11-year-old daughter, she knows a lot about azovstal, about mariupol, about captivity. she may not know the details , she doesn't need them, but in general the child is aware, and i was so ashamed at that moment when grown-up people, men, speak with such ease, with a smile, but i don't want to stab my head bad news, while his peers, risking their own lives,

protect us at the front or are in captivity, to say that i was torn by that video is an understatement you? well, at first i have such a sarcastic smile on this account, eh, what can i say to those people who do not understand what is around them, they do not live in a soap bubble, i understand, well, they probably have not reached that stage yet , when or if they , well, although there may be some failure in their development, to be honest, i don’t understand how the war has been going on in the country for the second year, they don’t know what is being done , they don’t know what azovstal is, no they know what it is... mariupol, they don't know what kyiv region is, they somehow abstract themselves from it there bad news, as they say, good news , unfortunately, there is no news yet, well, i,

honestly, i don't know what to say to such people, you know what a shame, it didn't even occur to them to say , forgive me, i don't know, but i 'll definitely find out, i'm ashamed, but i have to know about it, i'll try to somehow support, and in social networks. because now there is a lot of this information, the main thing here is to want to get it, in the era of the internet, well , there is no, well, there is no such closed information that they could not get their hands on, and it is terribly frightening, and i also want to ask you how you were greeted by the ukrainian land after the capture , what emotions did you feel, pleasant, unpleasant, did you have the feeling that i went there in vain, because here they react to... what happened in mariupol, it was not such that i i regretted something, if it turned out the same, i would fly again to where i was,

i would go the same way again, i believe that every person should be in the place where he is, i don't want to change anything , what you gained during the time you were in captivity, i understand that this is a very difficult period and about i don't ask for details, but nevertheless. what did they bring out of that captivity for themselves, what conclusions did they draw? the ability to wait, the ability to wait very long and so, patiently, for what should be, and i can say that this is, one might say, a more creative process, it was all for me, because i understood that from nothing depends on me here at all , there is absolutely no, well, no point in worrying about anything , and even if at some point i

don’t happen, i still won’t know anything about it, well, these are the thoughts i have to myself suggested, it helped me a lot, and at the moment, thanks to what happened to me, i learned to wait very, very well, i will say so, plus, i realized that the capabilities of the human body, they and our psyche, are much greater and higher, stronger than we think, i thought about my parents, while you were not here i thought about everyone, absolutely about everyone, about all my relatives, friends, i remembered. well, when i walked around the cell there, it was so small, just from the door to the window, i imagined that i was walking somewhere in the forest, in the park, well,

it was a kind of meditation, or when i was just sitting on the benches, i just looked at the wall, because there was no other entertainment there, i was imagining something, i was spinning some cartoons in my head, i was playing some life scenarios, i would meet there so as not to go crazy. meeting with relatives, i just imagined , and i can say that at a certain time , your days just start to pass, when you get used to everything that happens there, to beatings there, to torture there to absolutely everything, you already become a completely abstracted person, that is, you are used to all this, someone is shouting, you already you don't pay attention to all this, they took you out there, beat you up, well, you just walked in, that's all. absolutely everything just turns off for you and the days just happen to me, well, i’m completely out of it about myself, i can say that they passed just one after another

, just like that, i got up there, they gave me breakfast, already dinner, so boy, just a click, the day is over, they went to bed , that’s all, there were 120 such days in your captivity, did you count while you were there, or when you returned, did you realize how much time you had lost, i counted it while i was there, i roughly counted, i could be wrong, well, about 120 it worked out in a few days, i want to add a little optimism at the end of our conversation, i understand correctly, oleksandr, are you back at work, please? service returned to the army, yes? and how quickly did it happen? yes , well, in september i received a little treatment, i was treated there, there were some health nuances, so, in principle, by february i was already ready, in february somewhere in the first few days, i think i was already back on duty , back in the ranks, and you are now doing the same

fighting for again talking to the guys, the only thing they are afraid of is again not to be captured, they are not afraid of death , they are not afraid of anything but capture, have you thought about that, to be honest, i just try not to think about it when i go on missions, but i have already had several business trips, here i just try not to think about it at all, neither about capture, nor about death, nor about anything that could happen to you there. because if you dwell on it, you will be completely unfocused on your tasks and something can go wrong, i would n't want that, that's why i made this product for i have a certain plan for myself, how i should do it and what i should do in my head, i do that, what you dream about, what you would like, what i dream about, well, for now i

dream that the war will end as soon as possible. that we won is preshe, this is the first thing, because there is no point in running too far, in my case, it seems to me that not only in yours, the war taught us to live today, if before we made plans for the long term, so right now it's like making god laugh because we don't know what's going to happen in a week, we don't know what's going to happen in... considering that we have a mad neighbor who just destroys us and hates and destroys us fiercely and we all want this war to be over and we're all tired, that's obvious, but we can't lose heart right now, which helps you to hang on , what invigorates you in this life, well, i am invigorated by the support of my loved ones, that is, communication with them, when

i have a small day off, there is a vacation, i see them, spend time, unfortunately, well, not much, because time dictates its conditions in principle, but it saves me, in principle, my relatives, acquaintances, mine , your people, yes my people, alexander, we invited you here as an indomitable hero, and i thank you for this conversation, for your... forgive me, maybe some moments were not very comfortable, but nevertheless, for me you are unbreakable, and i want as many people as possible to know about you, and the viewers who will watch this program, so that they, if they suddenly do not know about the defenders, but the guardians of mariupol, so that they know about them , finally, i want to ask you what indomitability is for you and whether you personally consider it i consider myself an indomitable hero, well, to be honest, it is very

difficult to answer the question, do i consider myself an indomitable person, because i think, well, i am just like that, i can say, i consider myself an average soldier and that's all, no more, well, let's say this , there is a little bit of character, on this, on this and we go, in principle, in principle, that's all, and what is unbreakable is, i understand, for myself, that if a person is very, very difficult to break, morally, physically, so far everything is fine with me, in this respect, it means that i am doing something right, stotkovo, i wish you good health, it is very good.