Aidar fighter with call sign Jew: "Why do guys return to front after being wounded, while some "heroes" are in gym?"
Hryhorii Pivovarov, call sign Jew, is an Israeli citizen who has been fighting for Ukraine since 2014. He is an assault platoon commander and temporarily assuming the responsibilities of Company Commander from the combat unit of the 24th SAB "Aidar".
During the war, he was wounded three times, after which he returned to the front. He has received several distinguished awards - two Orders "For Courage" - III and II degrees, the medal "Joint Forces Operation. For Bravery and Loyalty", the medal ‘To the Defender of the Fatherland’, and the badge of the Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ‘For Service and Bravery’ of the III degree. He still cannot obtain Ukrainian citizenship due to bureaucratic procedures. After the victory, he wants to engage in tourism to promote love for Ukraine among Ukrainians and foreigners alike.
We recorded this interview over the phone because Hryhorii is currently in the Bakhmut direction. He answered in Russian because it is still difficult to communicate fluently in Ukrainian.
- I understand her very well. I read it well too," he explains to me and switches to Russian. - "But writing and speaking is still a problem for me. Even the guys ask me: "Speak in Russian, because you slur your speech, and it's hard to understand what you said on the walkie-talkie."
In our conversation, Hryhorii occasionally used Ukrainian words. I didn't translate them and left them in the original to convey the whole flavour.
- For you, the Russian-Ukrainian war began with the Maidan. After Russia invaded Ukraine under the guise of the pseudo-republics of the so-called "LPR," you thought that this confrontation would not last long. When did you realize that this was not the case?
- After all the withdrawals in 2014, I realized that the war would be protracted. Everyone knows about Ilovaisk, but they don't talk about the fact that there was also a tough withdrawal in the Luhansk region. However, Aidar and the 80th were a bit cunning there, so they were not completely surrounded.
- Were there any thoughts that a full-scale offensive was possible?
-Somewhere in the back of my mind I guessed. But even before the start, I thought that it would be such a "show of muscles" - that Russia is not so f@cking crazy as to dare to do such a thing. I assumed that it would be like in Israel on the Golan Heights: every year both Israeli and Syrian troops gather a full gang, start doing some kind of tough training. The Syrians imitate the capture of the heights, and the Israelis imitate the capture of Damascus.
In general, we were always training. Our battalion is always fighting on difficult directions. We were always moving forward, "digging" into the ground. When there was trench warfare, we did it in such a way that it was not easy for the enemy. We always practiced. Many people looked at us and laughed: "Why do you do it? Why are you strengthening the posts?" But it brought the results that Aidar achieved in the first days of the full-scale invasion. Our battalion held the defense until February 25th. We were still calling our relatives at lunchtime and saying: "Everything is fine! Don't worry. We repulsed all the attacks, we kicked their asses. The enemy won't get through!" And then we were told: "Your flank is breached. "You're surrounded. Retreat!"
- Where was it?
- Starohnativka near Volnovakha. We retreated to Anadol. Here we stood with assault rifles against the tanks. The heaviest weapons we had were a few Javelin charges and an RPG-18. At that time, the platoon commander (later he became a commander and company commander) Oleksandr Kovalenko (Hook) asked the Javelin operator: "Give me your 'night-vision sight'". He assessed the situation. Then we saw two columns coming down from the other mountain. They must have thought that the other was the enemy and started fighting with each other. We watched it like a film. It turned out that the commander had sent two pieces of equipment there to shoot right and left, confusing the enemy. We were very happy. But then another column appeared, coming towards us. We let it pass through us. Our sniper (Heavenly Kingdom) killed two tank commanders. The head of communications (who also died later) got up and fired at the vehicles with an RPG-18. As a result, we were able to capture the crew of an infantry fighting vehicle. The "javelin operators" killed this convoy. Then there was another one of about 100 units. We received the command to retreat. We started to retreat with two tanks. We almost got surrounded in Volnovakha, then in the Mariupol area. In the end, we stopped in one village. The second tank went to reload. It was supposed to come back for us the next day. At night, we woke up to the noise of the vehicles, and we were surrounded. There were just over 40 of us. Hook figured out a way to get out: we wrapped ourselves in sheets (because we were in an abandoned hospital), got on a tank and drove through enemy positions to Huliaipole. We were so well received there that we were shocked! People came out of their houses, set up tables, treated us to food and gave us cigarettes. We then went to Rozivka, and from there to Nikolske in the Mariupol district. There, our company killed Zhoga, the commander of Sparta. Then we were surrounded again and had to go back to the field. Then Staromlynivka and the village of Krasna Poliana. Eventually, we got a foothold in Vuhledar.
- How long have you been here?
- We gained control of Pavlivka twice. The first assault was on 8 May. We were promised help. But it did not come. We went on our own. At that time, the 155th Marine Brigade with a lot of equipment was advancing at us. We used all the means at our disposal to fire it. Then we realised that the "Сarl Gustav" was a very good grenade launcher, and the Czech AT-4s were also very good. But we were still exhausted. We retreated.
On the second attempt, we acted more cunningly - using their tactics, we simply drove into the fields, surrounded them, and the entire garrison from Pavlivka surrendered to the 53rd Brigade without a fight. And we killed those who wanted to leave anyway.
We held the line there almost until the end of August. And then the long-awaited rotation. Where to? To Bakhmut. We found ourselves in Kodema. We held the village for three weeks. When we realised we were surrounded again. We fought with Wagner and Liga. Our guys showed great heroism.
We received an order for stationing. We got a foothold on the Bakhmut road. Then there was Mykolaivka and Mykolaivka Second. I got an acubarotrauma when my group was rained down with mines. As a result, I got one heavy, several light ones, and I was wounded. Then we were taken out for three weeks in mid-October. We came back and went to Bakhmut again. Then I got wounded again and was out until 2023. Meanwhile, the guys were fighting in Opytne, which Aidar held for 21 days. "Wagner unofficially asked for a truce. Thanks to Hook's competent tactics, the guys killed a lot of Wagnerites. They did not understand what was happening. I was in hospital in Dnipro at the time, meeting our wounded guys. As soon as I could walk, I brought them everything they needed - clothes, phones.
After Opytne, we were taken out for two weeks to recover. Then we were sent to Zaporizhzhia. At the beginning of February last year, we returned to the Bakhmut direction and started fighting for the "Way of Life" - repelling the enemy on the canal with the 80th. They moved towards Andriivka, and we moved towards Klishchiivka.
- You said that prisoners were taken in the area of Volnovakha. What did they tell you?
- It was a regular army. We didn't manage to talk to them much then. We managed more when we stormed Pavlivka. One of them told us that conscripts were fighting. He surrendered because he was wounded by his own soldiers - the DPR. The locals said he hadn't committed any crimes. When we left, even though we were under fire, we took him with us. He thanked us, saying: "Thank you for saving my life!". Thanks to him, we learnt a lot of information about the BMP-3, which was causing us the most problems at the time.
-What you saw in a full-scale war is different from the periods of ATO and JFO...
- Absolutely! Many of us who were in the ATO miss those times. It was easier. Even though we said it was hard and stressful at the time. But now we realise that that period and now are two different worlds.
- Were there any pessimistic thoughts at the beginning of the full-scale invasion?
- At that time, we mainly thought about how to survive, how to gain a good foothold and destroy as many of these freaks as possible. Our battalion always had a fighting spirit. We made sure to maintain it. The main thing for us was to do as much damage to the enemy as possible.
- You mentioned the Wagnerites. What can you say about them? The soldiers who faced them in battle told me that they were not easy to fight.
- Yes, it is interesting to fight with them. They are a competent opponent. Of course, not all Wagnerites are perfect. They have professionals and prisoners. But they learn from their mistakes and change their tactics. Plus, there are a lot of them. In Kodem, their attack failed, but they kept hitting, not sparing people. They just keep going.
- And aggressively. I was also told that the Wagnerites are very cocky and self-confident. Some even go into battle without the necessary protection...
- I can say the same about the 155th Russian Marine Brigade of the Pacific Fleet. We met them in Pavlivka. They were on armoured personnel carriers, IFVs. They are lightly equipped - load bearing vest, helmet, no armour.
And with the Wagners, we were shocked by attacks: we kick their asses - they continued, and again - the same. In Kodeme they went like stubborn. I remember very well: I hit a house with a "Shmel", destroyed it, and the man kept digging near it. They stormed, we tried to regroup, and through a couple of vegetable gardens, the Wagnerites ran into the neighbouring house. My comrade and I stand up to our full height (even though we realize it's stupid) and just start shooting at them with automatic rifles. I have a "five", he has a "seven". We see some people falling. But nobody even looked in our direction - where they were shooting from. They just went forward like zombies. However, at that moment one of them could turn around, give a line and "eliminate" us.
-Why are they behaving so desperately?
- There are many factors that work. It seems to me that they have some kind of sect - a faith. Plus, I'm sure, drugs. There's also motivation and fear. They told me the following: "They told me they knew where my family was. If I go back, they will shoot me". Plus, the barrier troops, propaganda.
There is also a theme in combat: advancing with spirit. We also have this theme. When our guys went like that, they worked wonders! I was delighted myself! I remember how we stormed a crossroads for three days near Bakhmut in the autumn of 2022. We were moving forward, pressing. Our guys were wounded, but they got up and continued to shoot. When you advance with spirit, you feel strong and get excited. After that assault, we flew into the planting with the same excitement and cleared it, even though we were almost out of ammunition load. I had two or three full magazines with me. Plus, maybe a little more than half of them were in the machine gun. Then I took a trophy one. They also used grenades. We split into two groups and attacked. Mine took the left side, the other - the right. Сomrade Squirrel crawled away cunningly and threw grenades at the f@kers as they crawled out. I only saw the casecoats fly off.
But still, when we advance with spirit, we are much cooler than them! We defeat them utterly! Our guys in Opytne did that! Then Hook set up such a competent tactic that they simply did not understand who was hitting them, how and from where. Our guys were destroying their snipers and reinforcements. Even the British, who were with us, stood with their mouths open and were very, very shocked. They said: "This is great! Even above our level!". I will tell you this: it was thanks to Hook that we achieved great results and continue to do so.
And in late spring and early summer, when we were driving the enemy away from Ivanovske towards Klishchiivka, people used to say: "Aidar took 3.7 kilometres on foot!" On the first day, we liberated a small area. But when our guys got stuck, the commander gave the command, and five guys crawled 500 metres across the field in ghillie, crawled behind enemy lines and took their fortifications. And the next day, the guys just kept going, not stopping, and took those three kilometres and 700 metres. The enemy ran and crawled away like crabs. We are working competently. We try to give our best. Plus the attitude. Unfortunately, many of the guys who took part in those periods, some of them in the 200ths, some in the 300ths...
Another point is that we had youngsters back then. To be honest, I am a supporter of drafting 18- and 20-year-olds. Because every person who is older already has their own formed self. It needs to be broken. And you can sculpt what you want out of a young person. If you do it right, you will get perfect warriors. Our battalion can train well. Many units in the Bakhmut direction thank us for our training. You know, all our boot camps in Ukraine are a waste of time. They don't train there. The big mistake of our country is that each brigade does not train its own soldiers. In America, the Marines do not train paratroopers, and the paratroopers do not train rangers. Each has its own ideology and tasks. If we had it like that, we would have more success.
- We even have problems with mobilisation...
- They often take away those who are unfit. We write them off here anyway because we can't send them into combat. What can we do with them if they can't even walk 500 metres? And he needs to walk! Endurance is one of the main qualities for a fighter. It happens that a disabled person comes to the TCR to update his data, and they send him to the MMC. They let him through and created a problem for us.
- There are also those who deliberately evade service. How do you feel about them?
- I am not a citizen of Ukraine, but I went to fight for it and give my best. That's why I am very tough on them. If your country is on fire, you have to take up arms. If you don't want to feed your army, you will feed someone else's. Russians are evil... You know, if I started talking about them, there wouldn't be enough swearing. I know them very well. Israel has been at war against the Soviet Union since 1953 because it sponsored all of its enemies. Israelis know the "we are not there" tactic from the Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, and the Doomsday War. Russia is now sponsoring Hamas and Hezbollah, Israel's enemies. I was trained in conscription to fight specifically against the Russians. They openly talked about it.
- From what you said, I conclude that you also believe that Russia is not planning to stop at Ukraine and may advance on to Europe...
- She will go! It's her dream! I love history. If you look at the archives about the Muscovites, they won't stop. And their methodology remains the same. Before Ukraine, I travelled around Europe for four years. I didn't understand: if you are against fascism, why do you get so angry when you hear about everything Soviet? And then I learned what crimes the Soviet army committed. I knew about stupidity and the command "not a step back" from my veteran grandfather. He told me how they had to clear an area, and on a hill, they ran onto an enemy group. All they had to do was make a manoeuvre: 50 metres back and round. No way! Not a step back!" And in the first head-on collision, instead of three or four dead and a few wounded, 30 people died.
- Now we see that this is exactly how the Russians fight.
- Yes, they are! They haven't changed their tactics: just keep going! They are also being intimidated. They say that we are mocking the prisoners. Although the cruelty comes only from the Russians. And to everyone! We saw them destroy peaceful homes at the beginning of a full-scale war more than once. And we could not reach them - there were no weapons with the necessary range. For example, there was a case near Vuhledar. Drones were still rare then. One was circling. An old man was working in the vegetable garden. They killed him intentionally. We received an intercept where they were yelling: "Come on, come on, kill him!".
- Indeed, they are also cruel to civilians.
- This has always been the case! In Chechnya, it was clearly visible. Back then, there was no such access to the Internet to show it. And now we need to tell the world as much as possible about the crimes of the Russians. For example, about how they are throwing gas here, which has affected many of our people. But they don't spare their own people either.
- I often hear about this from the military - they throw them into battle without regret. You are now in the area of Chasiv Yar. The 225th Battalion is also fighting there. Their commander, Oleh Shyriaiev, told me that despite the "meat assaults " and artillery shelling, the main problem here is UAVs. What do you think?
- Yes, the war has changed. The biggest problem now is UAVs. The artillery and infantry are not as bad as drones. If we compare, we are losing to the Muscovites in this area. They have so many that they don't even spare night FPVs for infantry. They have everything on the assembly line, and we are lagging behind with our brains and factories. I still don't understand why volunteers are involved in the supply of drones. We can also produce the required number! We just have to fight corruption. Plus, I would put the squeeze on evaders hardly: if you don't want to serve, you will have your property confiscated, which is used to sponsor the army.
-Disputes about violation of rights will begin...
- Whatever! It's war! Otherwise, they will talk about violating the Russian constitution. Our problem is that we are too tolerant. When you are at war, you have to be tougher and more aggressive. Why do guys return to the front after three or four injuries, while some "heroes" are only in the gym, not here? Go to the gyms, to the beach, to Trukhaniv Island in Kyiv, walk around the centre of Lviv - recruit people!
-Many people are afraid to go to war. How to deal with this?
- Bring them here and we will make them into warriors! The main thing is the right approach. We once had a guy who was so thin and modest. No one bet on him. They thought he would be a problem. But he started evacuating the wounded when there were assaults. In Opytne, he proved himself to be a great asset - he ran between the houses with a cart under fire, bringing in ammunition load, food and water, and taking the wounded. Later he headed an evacuation group. In the area of Klishchiivka, he was hit by a mine. He was treated. He returned to serve.
We need to understand that people on the frontline also need to be replaced because their health is not eternal. We are tardy for too long. And in times of war, we can't! And we have to be united. Take Israel, for example: the coalition and the opposition there "grind off" each other, but when it comes to war, they unite and beat the enemy together. When the war is over, they will start fighting again.
- The Jewish people are known for their wisdom.
- Yes, but he took a lot from Ukrainians. One of the reasons why I defend Ukraine is the fight against anti-Semitism because before the Soviet Union, and now the Russians are constantly trying to demonize Ukrainians and make them look like anti-Semites and fascists. There were pogroms. But they were also carried out against Jews by the same British, Spanish, French and German people. There is no country in Europe that does not persecute Jews. But the main pogroms of 1919-1920 were carried out by Russian troops.
But one of the ideologues of Jewish nationalism, Jabotinsky, was friends with Petliura. We know that the UPA had a large number of Jewish doctors. Ukrainians have always been friends with Jews. I repeat, not without hassles, but there was no such thing as the Muscovites are distorting. Israel and Ukraine have similar histories. Even at the beginning of the war, I saw that the "lpr" and "dpr" were prototypes of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. They shout: "Kill the Jews!", and these - "Death to the Uke!" True, the lpr has not yet reached the point of having Putin and Medvedev streets, like the West Bank. But their situation is the same: the people live in poverty, and the government is ruled by bandits who have been sowing discord and seeds of hatred since school age and sending people to their deaths.
-"LPR" and "DNR" turned out to be clues to start a full-scale war...
- At the beginning of the full-scale war, some of the enemy's best fighters were LPR and DNR. They were motivated. But they are traitors. I treat them very harshly.
- Are you thinking about the future? When might it all end?
- I don't think so. I wish the war had ended yesterday. But it continues. My comrades in arms and I are just doing our job, beating the enemy, going forward, and hopefully it will end quickly.
Olha Moskaliuk, Censor.NET
Photos are provided by Hryhorii Pyvovarov
