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TITLE: 'I was horrified when I saw the capital. There was no electricity or water. It was in ruins' |
AUTHOR: Amelia Gentleman |
PUB: |
DATE: January 23, 2001 |
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Sergeant Vladimir Petrov, 20, (not his real name) had received only fleeting training in the rudiments of fighting before he was dispatched as a conscript to Chechnya last year. He had spent the earlier part of his military service driving military trucks around Moscow and had never been taught how to shoot. When he arrived in the Russian military base outside Grozny he was unarmed. It took his battalion commander 10 days to find him a gun. "It was only the third time I'd held a weapon," he said. Within days he was accompanying tanks patrolling the Chechen capital. The experience, he admitted, was terrifying. "It was hard to get used to the noise of whistling bullets," he said. "I was horrified when I first saw the city. There was no electricity, no water, no gas and not many buildings with roofs. I couldn't understand how people could survive there. The city was in ruins. I felt sorry for the Chechen children and the Russians who were still living among the bombed houses." Conditions for soldiers at the nearby base, Khankala, were only slightly better. "The water was so bad that a lot of soldiers got dysentery. We drank a strange kind of tea with almost no tea leaves and received inedible rations. At night our tents were very cold." Before he was sent into battle, Vladimir felt neutral about Russia's campaign against Chechnya. His views changed radically after a few weeks of active service. "I knew we were there to defend Russia - but it was all so pointless. A lot of men have died and I still can't understand what for. I lost two of my friends: one was 18 and I don't know how he died, he was reported missing in action; the other was 19, and was shot while on duty in Grozny - several men with him were killed at once. [They] were very young to die and I can't see there was any point in their deaths. I think most of my battalion felt the same way." He believes Russia should withdraw. "The Chechens will never give up fighting. The government has either to wipe out the entire region - which it can't do, because there are civilians living there - or it has to remove its troops." Vladimir was to receive a bonus to his salary of around 810 roubles a day (£21) for the duration of his service in Chechnya. "I thought my life was worth a lot more than that, but in any case I haven't received a kopeck of the money we were promised. All they've given us is a pass that allows us to travel on the metro for free." END |