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submitted 9 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/world@lemmy.world

When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ignited into war, back in Moscow, a young Russian who now goes by the name of Karabas was plunged into despair. Shocked by images of what was happening to Ukrainians in Russian-occupied areas, he decided to act — against Russia, his home and country.

Karabas said he knew that what he was doing was drastic. He packed his bags and decided to find a way to get to Ukraine to join the ranks of Kyiv’s troops fighting Russian forces.

It took him almost a year to make it happen.

Today, he is part of the Siberian Battalion, a unit made up of Russians who have joined Ukrainian military ranks to fight against their homeland, hoping someday to help oust Russian President Vladimir Putin. Its members hail mostly from ethnic minorities from Russia’s far east.

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[-] HowRu68@lemmy.world 49 points 9 months ago

How sad when being patriotic means you have to fight your own homeland. Sometimes there are no other options.

[-] CynicalStoic@kbin.social 11 points 9 months ago

In a way he is being very patriotic as he is helping fight for change in his country’s leadership

[-] Gradually_Adjusting@lemmy.world 1 points 9 months ago

I have sometimes felt like I should fight my own country... I have never felt like it might make any difference

In this we can envy him

[-] Skua@kbin.social 14 points 9 months ago

Brave men. I can only wish them luck

[-] theodewere@kbin.social 5 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

incredible balls and i'm sure he's glad he did it, even though the situation didn't get easier for him.. at least he's not meat in Putin's grinder.. now he fights alongside people who know what they are fighting for..

[-] autotldr@lemmings.world 2 points 9 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:


He packed his bags and decided to find a way to get to Ukraine to join the ranks of Kyiv’s troops fighting Russian forces.

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, Karabas said he was dismayed by how most Russians he knew either blindly supported Putin or were indifferent to the war.

Its fighters undergo lengthy security checks, which sometimes take up to a year, before they are trained and deployed to the front lines in eastern Ukraine, which has seen some of the most ferocious fighting of the war and where Ukrainian and Russian forces are locked in a grinding battle for control.

Fighters in the battalion from eastern Siberia hope a Ukrainian victory will bring them one step closer to dismantling Moscow’s political control over their region, among the poorest in Russia.

Those from the area’s Yakut and Buryat ethnic communities complain of racism and oppression in Russia, which has driven some activist calls for independence.

Integration into the Ukrainian forces was a lengthy process, they said — their documents were scrutinized, and if they passed this step, they were questioned at length upon arrival in Ukraine.


The original article contains 652 words, the summary contains 194 words. Saved 70%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

[-] Jaysyn@kbin.social 2 points 9 months ago

All of these men will die if the #fascist #GOP gets their way.

this post was submitted on 14 Dec 2023
225 points (97.9% liked)

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