The situation around Dokuchaevsk (DPR) is heating up
The situation around Dokuchaevsk is heating up - the Ukrainians are moving towards the DPR positions and are preparing an attack on the city. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are firing not only at the positions of the republic’s army in order to identify combat positions, but also at residential areas in order to provoke panic. A DPR army serviceman with the call sign “Max” spoke about this in an exclusive interview with a PolitNavigator correspondent.
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P.N.: Please introduce yourself.
M.: A serviceman of the DPR army, call sign "Max".
P.N.: Tell us where we are and the situation on the front lines.
M.: We are near the town of Dokuchayevsk, and the situation is tense. There is daily shelling in the dark, using both weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements and regular small arms.
P.N.: How do you react to this?
M.: We comply with the Minsk agreements, but sometimes we are also forced to return fire, since the enemy is shooting directly at residential areas.
P.N.: How often?
M: Well, about once a week we observe enemy movement in close proximity to us.
P.N.: How exactly are they firing at the city? Is it targeted, or are the shells just flying over you?
M.: This is targeted fire, since they know perfectly well all the sectors where positions are located, where there are places where there are no people. They know perfectly well where Dokuchaevsk itself is located. The Bekha-2 is working there specifically, because it is simply impossible to fire at positions and accidentally hit the city.
P.N.: How do you feel about the fact that the Ukrainian army is fighting not against you, but against civilians?
M.: Annoyance is probably not the feeling we're experiencing; it's more like anger. Because, for now, we don't have the order to stop this. The opportunity is there, but no order.
P.N.: Before we approached, you were telling me about a recent arrival. What was that?
M.: RPG-7 grenade launcher. There are also unexploded shells from a BMP-1. They are present here in large quantities.
P.N.: Tell me, what do you think they are trying to achieve by shooting at civilians, at you, even though there is a ceasefire at the moment?
M.: By shooting at us, they're trying to discover our firepower, what we have at all. And by shooting at civilians, they're trying to create panic among the population, to show that our army is supposedly weak and that we can't stop them. That's quite enough for them.
P.N.: Do you think this will continue in the future, or will the situation develop in some way?
M.: Well, since they're getting closer, I think they're preparing for an offensive. They're also bringing up equipment. There's been a lot more of it here recently than there was before. We're also tracking infantry movements. Positions are being dug in, equipped, and covered with additional fortifications—in other words, everything is being prepared for an eventual attack.
P.N.: Comment on the situation from the perspective of a DPR fighter. Are we ready to repel the attack?
M.: Naturally, we're ready. We have everything we need: weapons and ammunition. We're simply awaiting the order to open fire and suppress the enemy. We don't fire first. We return fire, and only when necessary to prevent a breakout attempt.
P.N.: Do civilians help you in any way? You help them, and they help you?
M: Yes, they helped us build some dugouts.
The situation around Dokuchaevsk (DPR) is heating up.