Russian forces aimed to turn Kharkiv into 'siege of Leningrad' - 92nd Brigade commander

He said this in the first part of Dmytro Komarov's documentary project Year. Kharkiv Region. 

According to the commander, at the beginning of the invasion, the Russian forces had an advantage in equipment and personnel. Therefore, they thought they could quickly storm the city, but Ukrainian defenders did not allow them to do so.

"They outnumbered us 20 to 1 in terms of equipment. In terms of personnel - 10 times," Fedosenko said.

He also emphasized that the Russians believed that Kharkiv was waiting for "liberation." However, after the first battles, the invaders realized that "the city will fight."

"They realized that Kharkiv is a big city and cannot be taken easily, and it is well prepared for an assault. At least people there are determined to hold on to their last breath. So they refused to take Kharkiv by storm, and they tried to block it from all sides. To do something like the blockade of Leningrad during World War II," the commander emphasized.

At the beginning of the invasion, 90% of Ukrainian air defense in the Kharkiv region was destroyed

According to the head of the Kharkiv Defense Forces, Serhiy Melnyk, after February 24, he contacted the commander of the 32nd Air Defense Missile Regiment brigade, who said that the entire brigade was almost destroyed.

"But he still had S-300 missiles, and they were put on alert. We managed to prevent Russian aviation from continuing raids on Kharkiv," he said.

Instead, Melnyk said that the occupying troops knew the exact location of all command posts, as they were built back in the Soviet era.

• On September 23, the National Resistance Center reported that Russian troops were planning sabotage on the border with the Kharkiv and Sumy regions.