In every war conflict, occupy a uncomfortable and feared place. They are figures who, out of conviction, interest or survival, decide to turn their backs on their own flag and put themselves at the service of the enemy. His name often becomes synonymous with dishonorthus avoiding pronouncing it. This is what happens with Sergei Storozhenkorespected former officer of the Ukrainian Armed Forces who has become one of the darkest cogs in the war machine of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
His story is that of a soldier who decided to turn his back on his homeland and put himself at the service of the enemy. Born in 1953, in the town of Smolenskjust two hours by car from the city that is currently under siege, He first betrayed his country in 2014, when .
Instead of defending his compatriots, Storozhenko He convinced hundreds of his men to desert with him. For that betrayal he even received a decoration: the medal ‘For the return of Crimea‘. Since then, he took the command of the 126th Coastal Defense Brigade on the occupied peninsula and rose through the ranks within the Russian army.
From decorated hero to villain
After, participated in the preparations for the large-scale Russian invasioncalled ‘special military operation’, which had to be resolved in just three days, says the BBC. However, the offensive against Ukraine turned into a protracted and bloody war.
In 2023, Putin promoted him to lieutenant general and gave him the command of the a strategic city in the northeast of the country because, , it constitutes the northeastern gateway to Donbas, a strategic objective for Moscow.
The battle for this town has been devastating, since it is estimated that It has cost the lives of some 13,000 Russian soldierswithout significant progress having been achieved. Storozhenko, the man who should have defended that land, has been sowing for more than two years destruction in his own native region.
Currently, the russian troops occupy the northern neighborhoods of the city, while Ukraine maintains control of the east and south. Analysts agree that the use of drones has slowed any progress. These small aircraft, capable of shooting down a soldier with minimal cost, have become a decisive weapon.
Storozhenko ha sido recently criticized for spreading ‘Kremlin-style facts’. He even claimed that thousands of Ukrainian soldiers were surrounded in the city, a statement that even Russian propagandists called absurd. “The city is far from being surrounded”says a spokesman for the Joint Group of Ukrainian Forces to the British newspaper. “It is an alternative reality. The situation is difficult, but Ukraine’s defenses resist,” he adds.
In the Ukrainian army, the reaction towards the ‘traitor’ is one of cold determination. “Everyone knows who they are fighting against,” points out Viktor Tregubovspokesman for the troops defending Kupiansk. “What was scandalous ten years ago is now old news. All traitors will be brought to justice,” he says.
Zelensky and the purge of traitors
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been clear about betrayal within the Armed Forces. In April 2022, just two months after the large-scale invasion began, by “violate the military oath of loyalty to the Ukrainian people”: Naumov Andrii Olehovichhead of the main department of Internal Security of the Security Service of Ukraine, and Krivoruchko Sergii Oleksandrovichhead of the office in the Kherson region.
“I don’t have time to deal with all the traitors now. But little by little everyone will be punished“Zelensky assured. “In accordance with Article 48 of the Disciplinary Statute of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, those servicemen who have not decided where their homeland is, who violate the military oath of loyalty to the Ukrainian people in regard to the protection of our state, its freedom and independence, will inevitably face deprived of high military ranks“he concluded.
