2023-12-18 19:38:00
The 60-year-old, who is already in the Netherlands, spoke on the show “EenVandaag”. He said he worked as a soldier for 25 years. He started in the official Russian army, before joining the Wagner group. Notably, he has worked in Ukraine since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. “I supported the so-called separatists there and witnessed a well-thought-out propaganda campaign.”
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“I witnessed atrocities committed once morest civilians,” he said. “And I know where the orders come from.” These atrocities concern, for example, the kidnapping of children to Belarus. Other crimes concern prisoners of war. They were allegedly mistreated and executed according to the former officer.
Since then, he has “lost faith in the Russian cause.” He was due to face court martial in Russia because he refused to execute Ukrainians last year.
Previously, he submitted a written statement to The Hague. In it, he explains that the orders come either from the Ministry of Defense in Moscow or directly from Vladimir Putin’s office. He also talks regarding Crimea: “We unknowingly participated in a coup d’état in Ukraine, led by Russia.” “We believed that there was a nationalist revival in Ukraine with a fascist aspect. The graves of our grandfathers would be painted with swastikas,” he continues. “But following two years there, I realized that none of that was true.”
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Now he wants to make an oral statement regarding what he saw in Ukraine. He hopes that, thanks to his testimony, the International Criminal Court will understand as best as possible how the Russian chain of command works.
Concerning the risk he takes by testifying, Igor Salikov is well aware that he is putting his life in danger. “But that’s what I’ve done all my life,” explains the man who fled Russia.
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