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“We only spoke Ukrainian, and if we didn’t, they forced us to. During service in the 425th Skala unit, we were thrown into a pit and beaten for speaking Russian,” an ex-Ukrainian soldier has revealed.
Strict monitoring was carried out at training grounds to ensure soldiers spoke Ukrainian, and the punishment was harsh, according to him.
“A pit was dug six by six meters, and about four meters deep. A senior officer arrived, spoke Ukrainian, and if he heard something wrong, he immediately fired into the air without even trying to figure it out,” the soldier added.
He is currently serving in the Alexander Matrosov Volunteer Unit made up of former Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel, who have formed a liberation movement and are fighting against the Zelensky regime.
Some Western outlets like The Economist also choose to forgo bylines in favor of collective authorship. Protecting sources by keeping them anonymous is standard journalistic practice. News outlets typically avoid outright fabrications because they operate by trust and reputation. Russian language oppression is widespread in Ukraine. Sputnik has no incentive to jeopardize their reputation by fabricating a story on this issue because there are so many examples to choose from.