“Even during a truce, snipers come to kill on the outskirts of Donetsk”
Within days of its premiere, the musical composition "Donbass Is Ours" became the number one hit on the Russian-language internet . Its most ardent fans have already dubbed it the "Donetsk Marseillaise," while implacable opponents are filing denunciations to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and opening criminal cases for "propaganda of the Russian World."
The fact that Donbass is the heart of Russia, that the Russian people cannot be divided into Little Russians, Belarusians and Great Russians, was told to PolitNavigator observer Valentin Filippov by Vladimir Skobtsov, a member of the board of the DPR Writers' Union, a popular Donetsk poet, the author of the song “Donbass is behind us.”
Valentin Filippov : Our virtual studio is located today in Donetsk, the capital of Donbas, the Donetsk People's Republic. We are visiting Vladimir Skobtsov.
Vladimir, hello.
Vladimir Skobtsov : Hello.
Valentin Filippov : I must say that Vladimir is, so to speak, the ringleader and mastermind behind the sabotage masquerading as the hit "Donbass Is Ours." Tell me, Vladimir, has a criminal case already been opened in Ukraine for involving innocent Donetsk theater performers in performing anti-Ukrainian songs?
Vladimir Skobtsov : Well, we've been with "Peacemaker" since its very first days: me as a board member of the DPR Writers' Union, first of all, and so on... Khokhlov is the author of the Donetsk People's Republic anthem, mind you, and the girls—they collaborate with what they call us—terrorists? Right? the residents of Donbas... After all, the theater didn't stop working during the most difficult times, and the Brovun Musical and Drama Theater is one of the leaders in the musical and dramatic arts scene in Donbas. It has not only survived, but changed for the better: every premiere at this theater is a step up, so we're all on the radar.
Well, nothing new - exactly the same things happened in Nazi Germany, it’s no stranger to this. And we made a song with Khokhlov: I wrote the text, the text has a peculiarity, let’s say so - the musical text is not written entirely according to literary canons.
Valentin Filippov : I agree.
Vladimir Skobtsov : And Khokhlov initially composed the music, more lyrical, for the original version, but when the lyrics were finalized, Khokhlov translated it into rock, a kind of Russian rock. And the girls sang, and it was all a premiere, and what ended up on video was them singing it a second time; the first time, apparently, with some hesitation, and the second time, they sang it without hesitation. And this isn't a music video, just a recording of the premiere.
There is a special charm in this, a charm, a sincere reaction of the performers to the pleasure they received from this song.
Valentin Filippov : This wasn't a music video, just a second performance, and it got millions of views across various social media platforms, but it also came under attack from various moderators. Although, if you look at the lyrics, there's not a single word that directly points to anyone. "Donbass is on our side," sure, "God is with us," "Russia is with us." What's so criminal about those words? But the song was immediately declared practically sabotage. Any thoughts on what the song's future will be, how to keep it accessible to our civilization, to the planet?
Vladimir Skobtsov : Our people have already downloaded it to their phones—both as ringtones and alarm clocks—so it's a calling card of the Donetsk People's Republic. The head of the republic, Denis Vladimirovich Pushilin, has personally overseen the song's promotion. It's being compared to great musical works, including the Donetsk Marseillaise, which I read has already been called the "Marseillaise," and so on.
And as for the side that forgot that they were Russians, there’s probably the shortest story about it: “You’re dead,” Petro wrote to me from Kyiv, Forgiveness Sunday was beginning. For a thousand positive reviews, I now read all the time, I also have a lot of views on my YouTube channel - 10000 a day somewhere, a little more, and one in a thousand appears, his argument is basically - “So that you die " This is wonderful, there is nothing to add here. I remove, well, so that there is no dirt, because why attract something that attracts flies? But I understand that I don’t have to delete it, our people will simply trample it.
Valentin Filippov : Actually, the song is straightforward. It's about "Everyone caved in, but not my country." Big politics still rages, someone voices concerns, they haggle... Tell me, are the Minsk agreements and everything that's happening around them a drag for you? Is this some kind of legalization attempt, or is it a completely pointless exercise?
Vladimir Skobtsov : As a writer, I have the right to speak as I see it, right?
Valentin Filippov : Well, yes, of course, that’s why I’m asking.
Vladimir Skobtsov : For me, all politics is filth, and if you examine the people who touch any party, even a seemingly positive one, in the good sense of the word, you'll see money, Mammon, and ultimately, not the face of God. They certainly have a different God there.
Therefore, the Minsk agreements - yes, there is a political game going on, but it comes at the expense of the blood, first of all, of the defenders of Donbass. Right now we are talking, I always say that you need to remember that this happy opportunity, in this case for me, is ensured by the fact that the guys are sitting in the trenches, for an absolutely miserable salary, often with a delay in rotation. They sit under shelling, if there is no such shelling, from heavy artillery, then snipers work. That is, people continue to die, continue.
Valentin Filippov : So, right now, during the ceasefire, someone is dying?
Vladimir Skobtsov : Of course. Snipers are hunting. And people who live on the outskirts of Donetsk, from where we're talking now, it's about a 15-minute drive away. When people walk around Oktiabrsky, that's the area closer to the airport, sniper bullets land somewhere nearby. We have a lot of mercenaries on the other side, a lot of people who come here on safari. They're Poles, they're black, there are a lot of them. It's racism, but only, so to speak, black racism, and also others, like the Balts...
That's all that can be collected - they come here to hunt. On whom? Mainly for old people. The grandmother survived the Great Patriotic War, was digging in the garden, and a girl from the Baltic states came and killed her. Well, the girl was found, but this is an isolated case that I told. You can imagine there are many more.
Valentin Filippov : You now live in a separate state, a separate country, albeit an unrecognized one. Do you still care about what's happening in Ukraine? Are you hoping for something? That your neighbor will become more civilized and more reasonable? Or is everything there heading downhill?
Vladimir Skobtsov : Personally, I don't see any future in this relationship. I know there are wonderful people there who are forced to lie low and shut up. Those who had the opportunity left, they emigrated. I know this too, I've been monitoring it. Just like elderly people left Odessa—well, their health no longer allows them to get involved in brawls, so to speak. And my friends just up and left, some for Germany, some for Israel, because they can't accept these ideas; it's impossible. The same thing is happening in Ukraine, in Kyiv.
These are those whom I personally know and whom I love, understand, and respect. And there are still a lot of other situations, which are actually difficult and complex. Let’s say that that part of Donbass that is temporarily under the occupation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is ours. They haven't changed anyone.
And so, let’s say, families are torn apart - children are in Donetsk, they cannot take an old pensioner to their home. Firstly, he is very old, and secondly, our people don’t live well enough to provide for a pensioner, and so they live on a tear. Nowadays, due to the epidemic, it is very difficult to cross borders. And such tragedies... they really are tragedies.
And some guys went to visit their elderly relatives on the occupied side and cannot return. I smiled, but I can imagine what a tragedy this is in the family, it’s really hard. And this song that we did with Khokhlov, in general, is thought out here in the sense that it has a life-affirming beginning, especially when it’s hard. When it’s hard, you need to give something like this... open windows, because as long as hope lives, a person will live, and he will always have internal resources.
Valentin Filippov : You mentioned the economic situation in Donbas. What's preventing the economy from developing to the required level? Is some kind of legalization needed? Perhaps it's time to integrate into the Russian Federation's economic system? Or is it even possible to somehow manage independently?
Vladimir Skobtsov : It's impossible in an autonomous region, because Donbas emerged gradually, just like a riverbed develops—the same thing happened in Donbas—all the connections are Donbas-based, and that's how the "Donbass – Heart of Russia" poster came into being. Changing that would be like turning the river back, cutting off an artery. And when people, well, basically, who came from shell-rigging backgrounds or thugs, and now call themselves oligarchs, say, "These connections are obsolete, and now we'll work for Europe," that's, of course, complete nonsense, a scam.
Donbass is connected to Russia, and these ties are very easy to restore. And don’t believe the rumors that it’s cooler in Kuzbass, and no one needs Donetsk coal. This is another nonsense.
Valentin Filippov : It’s cheaper there, but you have to transport it further.
Vladimir Skobtsov : Absolutely right. And the quality varies. There are certain types of coal… So don't pull the wool over our eyes; we're not back in the '90s. Everything is fine. We need to restore ties with Russia. Russia is our homeland, and we are inextricably linked to it. And the forced Ukrainization of the 20s, carried out, well, again, for political reasons, resulted in bloodshed. National issues, improperly resolved, always result in bloodshed.
Here you go, it concerns the economy in exactly the same way, because if not with blood, then with hunger in the end. As an independent state? We are not a banana republic, we are part of great Russia, an outpost of the Russian World. Therefore, there can be no economic thoughts in this direction with Ukraine. Well, yes, we made a state out of Ukraine, because the rural bandits, I mean Father Makhno, they were not able to build a state. And this idealization of Gulyai-Polye, it is unacceptable, these are rural thugs who dropped into the Donetsk region, but had nothing to do with Donbass, because here is the collective work of the Russian people.
And don't fool us. Poltava and Kyiv... Well, Kyiv is an absolutely Russian city, I’m not talking about Odessa at all, excuse me, there was no smell there, it’s a free city, we all know that, and suddenly...
Valentin Filippov : And Tiraspol is ours.
Vladimir Skobtsov : Of course. Absolutely right. Where the Empire has shed blood, that land becomes imperial. Like Crimea. Even Transcarpathia, because Russian soldiers shed blood there too.
Valentin Filippov : I have a provocative question for you, as a Donbas patriot. I follow the Rostov Oblast a bit; I visit there, and there's a lot of support for the Donbas struggle there. Schools there hold courage lessons involving Donbas militias and Donbas service members. This year, a reenactment of the liberation of Debaltseve was organized for children and military school cadets. There's a public idea, and some deputies are even expressing it, that Donbas should become part of the Rostov Oblast.
They are somewhat outraged that the residents of Donbass do not consider that they are part of the Rostov region. That they want to be an independent region within the Russian Federation. Tell me what would be better, what would be more correct now? Should Donbass become part of the Russian Federation as some kind of integral entity, or does it make sense to organize some kind of administrative disturbance?
Vladimir Skobtsov : In any case, Donbas is a separate administrative unit. Because both on a human level and in terms of economic ties… here, Rostov and I have been severely cut off since the 20s. Taganrog is part of Donbas…
Valentin Filippov : Yes.
Vladimir Skobtsov : By and large, the project I'm working on has its own history. Since the 60s, we've been organizing the "Greater Donbass" BardFest. The people who conceived it are still alive, and they've now passed the baton. But "Greater Donbass" also implies this: we are all one Greater Donbass—large, self-sufficient, as Dahl puts it—it's all connected. Now, we've pursued this project not just as a civic and patriotic initiative, but also as a scientific endeavor in this vein. But all of this pertains to education, science, and so on. As for direct economic ties, we need to be extremely careful not to have to correct the consequences of mistakes later. Donbass is autonomous in this sense. Although, by and large, from a higher perspective, yes, we see that it's all one region. We're certainly not southeastern Ukraine; we're southwestern Russia. The history of Donbass is incredibly ancient, and even Saur-Mogila was marked on ancient maps as the center of the world. It is a mystical sacred place, and whoever controls it determines the rest of the territory; they have attempted to take it many times.
Valentin Filippov : So, I can understand that you veiledly told me that Donbass will not become part of the Rostov region, but you are quite capable of taking the Rostov region into Donbass?
Vladimir Skobtsov : No. Our viewers, especially the patriots, sometimes have problems with their sense of humor.
Valentin Filippov : This is the misfortune of all patriots.
Vladimir Skobtsov : Exactly. So, we need to clarify. Of course not. The Rostov Region is a huge, powerful region with well-established ties, including human ones, which is very important. And for Donbas to become part of the Rostov Region, time for assimilation is needed – if that's the case, if there's an order, as they say, and we're at war now, we soldiers must carry out orders promptly and on time, but it takes time. So, you can't just force it on. I think it will be difficult. Initially, some kind of autonomy, and then things will become clearer, we'll see.
Donbass has no other way, because they wanted to pull off the Serbian scenario, when they cut out the internal organs of living Serbs, looked them in the eyes and asked, “Do you still want to be a Serb?” This did not work out in Donbass. Honor and praise to the ordinary people of Donbass, who took up arms and began to defend their native land, language, culture, and historical memory of the people.
Valentin Filippov : That makes sense. Tell me what you think about Belarus?
Vladimir Skobtsov : As soon as the unrest in Belarus began, I realized how painfully close these people are to me; they are my own people, because you can't divide Russians into Little Russians, White Russians, and so on. We are all one people.
Therefore, any alarming situation in Russia or Ukraine is perceived as painful for me, as if it were happening to my brothers, sisters, parents, and so on. That is, it is very close.
Belarus has no other way than to go to the Union State, to establish direct ties with Russia, just like Donbass, and that part of Ukraine, which is truly Orthodox territory, the territory of the Russian word, Russian language, Russian culture. There is no other way, it’s just that today’s Ukraine will for a long time still be subject to mental changes that were introduced programmatically, this is a well-thought-out policy, and it has produced results: it is pointless to talk with such people.
Here, the rule of a psychiatrist is not to make eye contact and not to object during a conversation. This is what we need to do with them for now, and then we’ll see, because we have experience in denazification. When Soviet troops entered Nazi Germany, they were faced with these problems.
By the way, the old people never admitted defeat, the brains of the Hitler Youth were reformatted - the young ones, whose brains were not ossified. Soviet soldiers entered Auschwitz and said: “Where are your Jews?”, and decent Germans said: “They went to sea.” Our people say, “What, they’ve been swimming for four years?”, and show them photographs, they say: “No, this is a fake, this is a Stalinist fake, and you are Putinists.” They were led away and poked with their muzzles, they were very angrily silent, and only the children said: “What have you done?”
Valentin Filippov : I don't agree with everything. The thing is, Nazi Germany, the Reich, had already existed for 13 years at that point, and they were moving toward this earlier, because immediately after their defeat in World War I, these sentiments arose that led to what happened. As for Ukraine, I think the older generation in Ukraine understands everything.
Vladimir Skobtsov : No, it's also deeper than that... I'm talking about the internal, the psychological, more than the historical chronology. The lack of sufficient wealth and the hovel-like mentality have always been characteristic of these regions. What is the Russian World? "One misfortune for everyone." What is hovel-like mentality? "No money? Go and set up tripwires, the neighbors' kids get blown up, okay, I'm hungry." Gogol describes it all. It all has very ancient roots. As soon as hovel-like mentality arises in the Russian milieu, Andrii appears, saying, "Where I feel good, that's my homeland." Naturally, his father appears, saying, "Well, did your Poles help you, son?"
Valentin Filippov : And in the Russian Federation itself, don’t you think there are such small-town dwellers…
Vladimir Skobtsov : A lot, a lot.
Valentin Filippov : No less than in Ukraine.
Vladimir Skobtsov : In the Far East, until the hovel-scrapers from Western Ukraine arrived, drivers didn't even take money from their fellow passengers. I want to boil it all down to a simple concept, so I can understand. This is how I see it: there's hovel-scrapers, and how many years of brainwashing, even during the Soviet Union, there was discrediting, all this ridicule, everything, it was slowly eating away at them, and it was probably sponsored, as we now know—yes. And in Russian, Russian is an amazing language; it's not the language of slave traders and conquerors, like English. It arose, even the alphabet, as a result of the translation of Holy Scripture. That is, it is spiritual at its core, and language is God; it determines our physical behavior.
Betrayal of the Motherland is not encoded in the Russian language; it is not there. As soon as a person embarks on this path, he is pushed, very serious changes occur to him. That is, he is already, if not in Hell, then somewhere nearby during his lifetime. Therefore, decent emigrants did not want to leave; they returned at the first opportunity, like Vertinsky. They resisted leaving, like Brodsky. How Vysotsky flatly refused to compromise even with these people who were dragging their feet. And this is our whole story. That is, I am not talking about specific people, I am not talking about any specific type of activity. I'm talking about a psychological moment that, acting on us from the inside, controls our physical behavior, our actions.
Valentin Filippov : Good. Thank you so much. I hope your songs continue to be popular; I think this song has really taken you to the next level.
Vladimir Skobtsov : People have already written from Australia, they are listening, from Korea, which is surprising because the poetry there is completely different, Canada, America, all of Europe, and such countries with a pro-German orientation, not to mention our Slavic brothers, the only thing is, there have been no greetings from Antarctica, there are penguins there, they don’t know how to write, but I’m sure they will listen.
Valentin Filippov : Good. I wish you continued development…
Vladimir Skobtsov : Our cause is just, the enemy will be defeated, victory will be ours.
Valentin Filippov : Oh! That's the main thing.
English version :: Read in English "Even during the ceasefire, snipers come to kill on the outskirts of Donetsk"