AFU POW tells how she was sent to Kursk region border area under threat of execution

AFU POW Natalya Balaklitskaya tells how she was sent to Kursk region border area under threat of execution

'The command said, “You're going to Kursk region. We don't know where to exactly. But the order was given.” They said that we wouldn't be deployed on the front line. Even more, they said we would get a bullet if we refused go. They said we would remain at the positions about seven days.’

Seven days later, the promised personnel rotation did not happen, she added. In one of the days, the AFU militants heard Russian troops approaching.

'They opened fire and approached. We came out and shouted that we surrendered and we had no arms,' said Natalya Balaklitskaya.

According to the prisoner of war, she volunteered to join the Armed Forces of Ukraine because of difficult living conditions. She had no money even to buy some. But she had two children to feed.

The command promised that the woman would work in a mess. At first, she was a cook in the rear, Komar (Donetsk People's Republic). She worked there for a month, and she was sent to the line of contact when the brigade faced a lack of riflemen. She had previously undergone training in the UK. There was no division into specialities, and everyone was trained to serve in motorised rifle units.