Ukraine's Heroes. He led more than 300 soldiers from his battalion out of encirclement: commander of the 24th Detached Mechanized Brigade, Serhii Mazorchuk (Irys)

The Espreso journalist talked to Serhii Mazorchuk (call sign Irys).

Krymske, Zaitseve, Zolote - the positions that Serhii Mazorchuk with the call sign Irys passed during the Russian-Ukrainian war. He got there in 2015 and is still protecting Ukrainian borders.

"Great-grandmother wanted me to be a soldier"

Serhii dreamed of becoming a soldier even when he was a ten-year-old boy. And at the age of 15, he entered the Ostroh Military Lyceum in the Rivne region. 

"My parents are not military", Serhii said. "Only my late grandfather served in the army. He graduated from the military department and was in Cuba during the Soviet Union. In addition, my great-grandmother said that she saw me as a soldier. However, despite this,  joining the army was rather my conscious choice. At the age of 15, I decided to enter the military lyceum".

According to Serhii, the educational institution made it clear what the army is. There was strict discipline. Boys were expelled even for smoking. And the level of education was higher, compared to a regular school.

"The training is much better there",  Serhii emphasized. "I was able to enter the Hetman Petro Sahaidachny National Academy of Land Forces immediately after graduating. It was 2011. At that time, as cadets, we could not even imagine that we would have a war with  Russia. No one considered this country as an enemy. We thought about the possibility of conflicts between Russia and the countries of Western Europe, but definitely not Ukraine".

When the Russian-Ukrainian war began in 2014, Serhiy was still studying. He was supposed to finish his studies at the academy the following year.

"Before the new year, there was no question of early graduation", Serhii said. "We calmly went on winter vacation. But events happened in Debaltseve, and we were informed that we would finish the academy sooner. Intensive training began: five pairs a day were about military tactics, and we were told about battles in the steppe and in the city. And so - until February 28. At this time, there were already the first losses of our graduates, whom we saw off on their last journey. That is, we were morally prepared to hate the enemy. And we knew exactly who was who".

"L/DPR fighters cannot be underestimated, because they have learned to fight, unlike the Russian army"

So, in 2015, the academy had an early graduation, and at the beginning of March, Serhii was in the position as part of the 24th Brigade. He chose the place of service himself - it was the only and most powerful infantry brigade in the Lviv region.

"The 24th was one of the first to defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine", Serhii said. "That's why I decided to go there to serve. At the age of 21, I became a platoon commander. At first I was in positions on the second line. And then they defended other positions in the East. In 2015, offensives took place in some areas and the artillery was working all the time. But in August, the conflict "froze" and by February 24, 2022, we had a permanent front line outlined, where there were minimal local assault actions from both sides".

For eight years, Serhii Mazorchuk went through various combat points in the East. The year was in the area of ​​the settlement of Krymske. Then there was a rotation in Zaitseve near Horlivka. There were very fierce battles, because the distance between the Ukrainian military and the enemy was from 70 to 110 meters. And then there were the positions in Zolote, from where, as a battalion commander, he managed to lead more than three hundred subordinates out of the encirclement. According to the defender, until February 24 of this year, representatives of the so-called republics, who gained combat experience during the war years and are now better prepared in battles than the military of the Russian Federation, fought mainly.

"We stood without a left flank for two days. If the enemy had known about it, everything could have turned out differently"

"We took up positions in June 2021. There was supposed to be a rotation in March", Irys said. "We were comforted because for the first time during the Russian aggression, we were supposed to be at home in the summer and could go on vacation. But since February 16, the enemy's artillery has become very active. It was relatively quiet in our direction, in Zolote, on February 24. We saw that air alarms were all over the country and that the Russians began to bomb our cities. Our units, which were on the left flank in the settlements of Krymske and Shchastya, held out on February 24, and the next day the Russians broke through the defense, and our units were forced to retreat to Severodonetsk. We stood without a left flank for two days. If the enemy had known about it, everything could have turned out differently".

"The Ukrainian army is being rearmed, so the coming months will be a turning point"

Now the man is still in positions - he defends Ukraine. Although he spent his entire conscious life in the war, he doesn't lose his optimism.

"The Russian Federation has sent very large forces to Ukraine", Serhii Mazorchuk concluded. "They don't have a lot of equipment anymore, and we will soon destroy the remaining equipment. In any case, Putin has already lost. He was expecting our quick capitulation and wasn't ready for a protracted war. I think that our army will now be rearmed and in the coming months there will be a turning point. Of course, we will have losses, but we have something and someone to fight for. Victory will be ours!".

Espreso continues the series of stories about Heroes of Ukraine who defended and are defending the country from Russian invaders. There are more stories in the column of the same name, Heroes of Ukraine. 

Photo provided by Serhii Mazorchuk