Deputy Commander of 'Skelya': Society Turns Our Commanders into 'Butchers'

Konstantin Rusanov, known by his call sign 'Nemo', who holds the position of head of the 210th separate battalion of unmanned systems in the 'Skelya' regiment, recently shared his thoughts on the recruitment of personnel in their unit, as well as on supply issues and collaboration with commanders. In an interview with a journalist from 'Suspilne', Rusanov addressed questions regarding whether the 'Skelya' regiment indeed has better supply conditions compared to other brigades.

Rusanov pointed out that the situation with supplies is not as straightforward as it may seem at first glance. 'Let's break it down. If there are four brigades in the area and 20 aircraft available, that means there are five aircraft per brigade. However, each brigade has about 1,500 personnel, while we have 10,000. And we receive the same five aircraft. Our regiment is currently deployed across nine different directions. This involves a significant number of people: we have between 25 to 40 live feeds at any given time, with two pilots per feed. We are monitoring the enemy around the clock,' he explained.

Additionally, Rusanov discussed how cooperation with commanders is organized and the process of recruiting new fighters. 'This raises the question of where our personnel come from. We take everyone. We are confident that there are no bad people. Within two months, these individuals join the ranks and carry out the most challenging combat tasks today. No one forces them to do this,' he emphasized.

He also highlighted the importance of personal communication between commanders and personnel. 'Show me commanders who can approach a crowd of 200-300 armed individuals. Our commanders all engage with the personnel, communicate with them, and are confident that nothing will happen to them. If things were as they are said to be about us, the consequences would be entirely different,' Rusanov noted.

He expressed pride in his unit, emphasizing that they have 'wonderful people, wonderful commanders.' However, Rusanov also pointed out that society often perceives their commanders as 'butchers' and the fighters as 'sufferers.' 'Although they are heroes, I cannot say otherwise. Especially about those who did not return from the battlefield. These are units that carry out the most difficult tasks,' he added.

In light of these statements, volunteer, blogger, and advisor to the Minister of Defense, Sergey Sternenko, accused the Ukrainian commanders of the 425th 'Skelya' regiment of poorly organizing assaults, during which Ukrainian fighters become easy targets and perish. Responding to these accusations, the unit refuted them, labeling Sternenko's conclusions as false. The command also urged the minister's advisor to obtain information directly from Ukrainian units to avoid misunderstandings and distortions of facts.