People’s Hero of Ukraine Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi: "I thought I’d serve somewhere on staff of some brigade. That was ceiling"
This interview was recorded on 8 February 2022 at volunteer Da Vinci’s base in Novohradivka for a book about the People’s Heroes. It has never been published anywhere else. At the time, anticipating a full-scale offensive, Mykhailo Vasylovych and I spoke about his path in the war since 2014, the situations in which he saved, without exaggeration, hundreds of people by leading them out of encirclement, and about his family and Ukraine. This conversation offers a better understanding of the man who has served as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since 21 July.
INFANTRYMAN MYKHAILO DRAPATYI: "FROM CHERVONOPARTYZANSK TO ZELENOPILLIA, EFFECTIVELY OUT OF ENCIRCLEMENT, WE BROKE THROUGH WITHOUT LOSSES"
In 2014, the battalion commander of the 72nd Brigade, the position Mykhailo Vasylovych held at the time, led 410 soldiers from his battalion out of encirclement in the Luhansk region, along with more than 500 servicemen from the 24th and 79th Brigades, groups from the 51st and 28th Brigades, and the 3rd Special Forces Regiment.
Mykhailo Drapatyi is often described as an exemplary Ukrainian officer. His combat record since 2014 bears this out. During the war, he has fought in some of the fiercest battles, obtained the education that qualifies him for appointments to senior positions in the country’s military command, and served as a deputy commander in the Donetsk region. It was there that Mykhailo Vasylovych faced Russia’s full-scale offensive against Ukraine. Now a brigadier general, he continues to defend Ukraine directly where heavy fighting is taking place. Because he knows no other way. This conversation was recorded shortly before 24 February 2022. We recalled events dating back to 2014, particularly the decision that saved hundreds of lives. It was for this deed that Mykhailo Drapatyi received the Silver Trident, a people’s award.
In May 2014, units of the 2nd Battalion of the 72nd Brigade, then commanded by Major Mykhailo Drapatyi, were stationed near Mariupol. On 9 May, an armed terrorist group attempted to seize the city. The battalion was ordered to enter Mariupol in armoured vehicles to reinforce the units repelling the assault. Mykhailo Vasylovych commanded the operation. Everything had to be done quickly, before the enemy could get its bearings and to prevent civilian casualties. The Ukrainian infantrymen advanced in a convoy. Near the state administration building, they were blocked by a crowd of so-called "civilians". Although the people were dressed in civilian clothes, the organisers stood out among them. The separatists hastily erected a barricade of car tyres and assorted debris on the road the troops were to take back to their base after clearing the city. When Mykhailo Drapatyi, who was in the lead infantry fighting vehicle, saw the barricade, he simply told the driver-mechanic: "Step on it!" The armoured vehicle flew over the obstacle. The rest of the vehicles followed the commander’s vehicle across the barricade. The well-known footage capturing the IFV’s "flight" went around the world as an example of courage and determination to defend the city. That spring of 2014, they succeeded. The enemy encountered powerful resistance, while local residents felt the support of the Ukrainian army. Ukrainian flags then began flying throughout Mariupol. From that point on, the enemy began calling the 72nd Brigade the "Black Brigade" and feared confronting it. Mykhailo Vasylovych Drapatyi played a direct role in earning the unit that reputation.
"WHEN MY MOTHER FOUND OUT THAT I WANTED TO PURSUE A MILITARY CAREER, SHE WAS VERY UPSET"
— Can you analyse how the enemy has changed over the years of war? It has not been sitting idle: the Russians are learning everything they can, and Donbas has become a genuine training ground for them…
— Of course it has changed. The 1st and 2nd Army Corps of the so-called "LPR" and "DPR" are effectively part of the 8th Army. All their training, both operational and combat, is integrated into a single system, as is their command and control. Over this time, they have gained experience and learned how to fight, particularly specialists such as snipers, UAV operators, artillerymen and electronic warfare personnel. All the latest equipment has also been brought there; everything involving its operational and tactical use is tested here. It is, of course, a vast training ground for them. They test counter-sniper equipment here, as well as laser dazzling systems capable of causing retinal burns. Such things do happen.
— When you graduated from the military university, you were named its top student and received a special distinction, a sword, as well as a diploma with honours… Some time later, you also became a brigadier general. Did you ever harbour ambitions of rising to the rank of general?
— Before the war, I could not have imagined that any of this would happen to me. To be frank, military personnel used to pay for ranks and positions, and connections also played their part…
— There was a reason for the saying that generals have sons of their own who must also become generals, wasn’t there?
— Yes. Before the war, I planned to enrol at the university for operational and tactical-level training, graduate and serve somewhere on the staff of some brigade — That was the ceiling…
— You never even imagined yourself rising to the position of brigade commander?
— I did in my dreams, but I was a realist. I did not think I would achieve it. But things turned out as they did. War is, of course, always a tragedy. It means the loss of human lives and devastation. But war also reveals people’s potential, that of commanders and subordinates alike.
— Did you also graduate from school with honours?
— Yes, with a gold medal. When I was in the seventh or eighth grade, I discovered in myself a drive for leadership, to come first and to keep improving. I wanted to be first, to be the best. I graduated from school with a gold medal, from the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Forces with honours, from the operational and tactical-level programme with honours, and from the operational and strategic-level programme with honours as well.
— The sword was presented to you by a distinguished representative of the United Kingdom…
— Yes, by Melinda Simmons, the British ambassador, a wonderful, remarkable person. I once spoke with the military attaché. He is a tank officer, incidentally. As a "mazut" myself (as infantrymen and tank troops are known in certain circles), I understand what an NLAW is and what modern grenade launchers are. They spell disaster for a tank. And the British said: "We are great friends and partners of Ukraine." This is evident, as they say, not from words but from deeds. This Sword of the Queen of the United Kingdom is a rotating award presented to the best graduates of the operational and strategic-level programme…
— Is it taken back after a year?
— Yes. A year later, the name of the next top graduate is added to the roll of honour in the lobby of the National Defence Institute. Special records list everyone who has received it, and the sword is returned to the museum. It is a rotating distinction. The top students are also presented with an exact miniature replica in a small case.
I am not used to being number two, nor do I want or have any desire to be. Do you understand what I mean? When I was already serving in the 58th Brigade, I came to understand the duty and responsibility borne by an officeholder, a brigade commander, and what it means to have a brigade under your command. When such a mechanism operates at full capacity, and you see both your own contribution and that of the entire team, the result is the accomplishment of combat missions, the restoration of combat capability, and everything else. It is important to me to deliver the best possible result. That is how my life has unfolded; that is my character.
— Are there many military personnel in your family?
— No. My father was not in the military. My mother’s brother graduated from the Kamianets-Podilskyi Military Engineering School. There are no other military personnel in the family. My uncle completed the minimum service required for a pension and left the military.
— Why, then, did you choose a military career?
— I do not know. In the eighth grade, I dreamed of enrolling at the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Forces. And I did. When my mother found out that I wanted to pursue a military career, she was upset.
My mother worked as a history teacher in Kamianets-Podilskyi. But my father was laid off from his job (he worked at a military school), and the family needed to be supported, so my parents were offered teaching jobs in Russia. They lived there from 1996 to 2014. When the war began, they returned in May 2014.
I was raised mainly by my grandparents. My sister lived with our paternal grandparents, while I lived with my maternal grandparents. The family was somewhat divided. But I believe I received an exceptionally good upbringing. I took the finest human qualities from my grandparents and my parents, even though they were far away, and I can pass them on to those who come after me.
"THE GUYS WHO REMAINED AT THE DOVZHANSKYI CHECKPOINT CRIED TEARS OF JOY WHEN THEY SAW US"
This video was recorded on 9 May 2014. Drapatyi was the commander of the BMP-2 crew and was the first to break into captured Mariupol.
— When did you realise that the country was at war? When did it become clear to you that this was indeed the case?
— Probably when we were already carrying out missions in the Luhansk region and suffered our first casualties. When we realised that these were not miners who had taken to the streets with pitchforks, but professional artillerymen, tank crews and all the rest – regular Russian military personnel. When the first attacks involving anti-tank missile systems and artillery began. Although I had anticipated it as early as February. I sensed it subconsciously from reading and watching how everything happening in our country was being portrayed in the Russian Federation. They stressed that troops would be sent in to prevent a seizure of power. That was when I realised that something was bound to happen and that bloodshed was inevitable. They would not simply let us go or allow us to escape their influence. And as we can see, it continues to this day.
— How difficult is it to issue orders knowing that they may lead to the deaths of soldiers?
— Every order carries responsibility. At the same time, it must be based on cold, sober calculation. The main thing is not to give in to emotion. Every decision that was made and continues to be made must be exceptionally well prepared and justified. Before 2014, I had no experience as a battalion commander in making decisions during or before combat operations. I will say that it was frightening at the permanent deployment base when the mobilised personnel arrived, and you did not know what to expect from them. Once combat coordination began and we moved on to company-level tactical exercises with live fire, I realised that this was a battalion – a combat unit. It was cohesive, armed, trained and prepared. That was when I realised there was nothing to fear. The main thing was not to issue an order that could not be carried out or would have tragic consequences for us.
The first wave of mobilisation remains a model for me… Most of them were from the Kyiv region. These people had a level of motivation that most officers lacked; they were so driven and formidable.
— Many of the volunteers from 2014 remain at war to this day. They have undergone training, received officer ranks, and now hold senior positions.
— That is true. I think the spirit of a warrior, a defender, and a patriot is embedded in Ukrainians at the genetic level. It has been forged over centuries. It cannot simply be destroyed or killed. For me, language is the very foundation of identity. Why do the Muscovites so aggressively promote the idea of the "oppression of Russian speakers"? This scum wants to continue imposing the parasitic Russian language on us. It was the spirit of Ukrainian men and women that made us remember that this is our land and that we belong to a glorious nation.
— In 2014, you spent almost a month encircled near the Russian border in the Luhansk region.
— More precisely, we were semi-encircled.
— Was that when your unit was left without water and food?
— And without certain types of ammunition. Aircraft airdropped what we needed. Later, after the last aircraft was shot down, the brigade commander, Colonel Andrii Mykolaiovych Hryshchenko at the time, managed to arrange for us to receive both food and ammunition. To be frank, there was panic – not so much because of the situation itself as out of fear for people’s lives. They began inflicting serious damage on us, firing multiple-launch rocket systems, mortars and artillery, initially from the Krasnodon-Izvaryne area, which was outside our control, and later from Russian territory as well. During those days, I told my wife that I did not know whether I would ever call her again.
— Did she know where you were?
— Of course she did. My son knew too. He was four years old. I did not hide the truth from my family. I simply told them that things were more or less all right. But when we withdrew from near Izvaryne to Chervonyi Partyzan and linked up with the 1st Battalion, they began pounding us into the ground… They kept firing continuously for five or six hours at a time. But we had a rule: the moment a squad, platoon, company or battalion reached its position in the assembly area, everyone immediately dug in. That was it. We always found the right words and never lost heart. I always told my soldiers to stand firm.
In the early stages, when we had just taken up positions in the Luhansk region, on the easternmost section of the state border, we ran out of water. We met the head of the local community (I do not remember his name), who spoke Ukrainian. He arranged everything. A tractor and a tank holding one or two cubic metres were used to bring us water every day. Before we withdrew, the separatists abducted this man and shot him for bringing us water.
— How did you make the decision to attempt a breakout?
— Dmytro Oleksandrovych Khrapach was with me at the time. Today he commands the 27th Rocket Artillery Brigade in Sumy, but back then he was an artillery battalion commander in the 72nd Brigade and a colleague of mine. I called Colonel Hryshchenko and told him that the 1st Battalion was going through Russia. He said: "Do not even think about it! Preserve your dignity and save your people. Try to break through." The 1st Battalion abandoned its tanks and IFVs…
Khrapach and I talked it over. He was, after all, an experienced artillery battalion commander. I said: "Hryshchenko told us to break through. I support that, in principle." Although before speaking with the brigade commander, I had also intended to go with the soldiers through the territory of the aggressor state. We assembled all the officers: he gathered his from the artillery battalion, and I gathered mine from the 2nd Battalion. We were going to break through. I would be in the lead IFV.
— You were the battalion commander. You should not have taken such a risk.
— Perhaps it was instinctive… It had to be done that way so the soldiers could see and believe in what we were doing.
— Were you afraid? You were heading into the complete unknown.
— I was. For two weeks, perhaps longer, no convoys had reached us — neither supplies nor ammunition. There was uncertainty everywhere.
— How did you choose your routes?
— Wherever possible, we used roads that remained passable for civilians. We travelled for nearly the entire night – the longest night of my life. Every bend was frightening because we did not know what awaited us around it. Even then, we saw tractors that had been blown up in minefields. We also saw our own destroyed vehicles.
We set out on 6 August. In total, we covered 160 kilometres through occupied territory, picking up other units along the way. We moved along the Russian border. We reached Zelenopillia without losses, thank God. We picked up our border guards from Zelenopillia and mortar crews from the 1st Battalion. When the guys who had remained at the Dovzhanskyi checkpoint saw us, they began crying tears of joy… We put them aboard our vehicles and headed towards Diakove. A unit of the 24th Brigade was stationed in Zelenopillia. Decisions had to be made quickly because there was a concentration of equipment and personnel. They had come under fire on 11 July and suffered very heavy losses. I anticipated that the same disaster could happen again. So we continued moving. The 79th Brigade was waiting for us in Diakove. We arrived there, settled in and spent three days deliberating over what to do next. We eventually decided to continue towards safer areas. We divided into six columns, which left Diakove one after another.
— Were the paratroopers already clearing the routes for your columns?
— Yes. The brigade commander at the time, Valerii Adamovych Kurach, went with the first column. I left with the last column, alongside my battalion.
Kurach crossed the Mius River, where the 95th Brigade had also been setting up a crossing. Later, it was either destroyed or a tank fell through it, making it unusable for crossing the river. The 24th Brigade secured the flanks of our withdrawal before pulling out and leaving as well. And so, at around eight or nine in the evening, the remaining five columns, since the first had already crossed, found themselves in front of the Mius River. There was an enormous concentration of troops and equipment. Then they began firing BM-21s at us. The fire came from near Dmytrivka. Thank God, the rockets struck the fields and roads because the enemy believed we were positioned on those roads, while we had moved closer to the river. I called Colonel Hryshchenko and told him that we were being fired on from near Dmytrivka, that there had already been several salvos, and that if it continued… When the explosions are a kilometre away, it feels as though they are firing directly at you. The noise is tremendous and takes a heavy psychological toll. Khrapach and I made a decision: we would head upstream to look for a crossing. We found a bridge. In front of it was a pit about three metres by three metres and roughly three metres deep. There was another pit beyond the bridge, while a mushroom-shaped concrete bridge support stood on the bridge itself. There was no point searching farther upstream because beyond that were territories no longer controlled by our forces but occupied by illegal armed groups. Then the 79th Brigade arrived, along with one of our tanks from the 72nd Brigade. Its commander was Volodia Boreiko. I said: "Volodia, either you or your driver needs to make an access ramp." The driver refused. They had to make an approach from the side, bypassing the obstacle, get onto the bridge, and knock down the concrete support. Volodia knocked it down while I illuminated the way with a flashlight — it was night. We managed to make an exit ramp as well, and all the troops crossed using that little bridge. There must have been as many as 200 vehicles.
When I brought up the remainder of the battalion, along with half of the 72nd Brigade, a rocket artillery battery and Dima Khrapach’s battery, we all crossed that bridge. Then the border guards came running: "Our vehicle was blown up over there and burned out. Take us with you, there are ten of us." There were about 20 men riding on each IFV, clinging to every available surface. Everyone in the Ural trucks was standing because there was not enough room even to lie down – that was how many people there were.
— Where did you realise that you were safe?
— Near Savur-Mohyla, in the village of Stepanivka. The 30th Brigade was there. When we saw our own troops… Those emotions are impossible to describe. The guys said: "We thought they would trap you there…" Fighting for Savur-Mohyla was underway at the time, and we could see what was happening there. The commander I met told me: "Get out of here because drones are operating overhead — the moment they appear in the sky, fire immediately follows." We headed towards Amvrosiivka and refuelled there. When we reached a dirt road, we were ambushed – my three vehicles came under fire. There was some sort of enemy position, but it was far away, probably about a kilometre away in a tree line. We opened fire with the BMP-2 cannons, and 15 minutes was enough to level everything there. One of our soldiers was killed then – Serhii Volnukhin from the 1st Company. May he rest in peace.
Enemy artillery kept trying to reach us throughout the journey. Yura Liulka was bringing up the rear and said that the shells were landing closer and closer. There would be a salvo, and we could see the dust rising. They were trying to find us, but thank God…
Throughout the entire journey, I called either Liulka or the commanders of the other columns every ten minutes. They all said they were still moving. We reached a river up to eight metres wide. I was amazed by what our equipment was capable of. The IFVs and tanks negotiated the descent, the ascent, the water and the ford… No reconnaissance had been conducted, yet everyone made it across – the ZiL and Ural trucks, and the IFVs carrying troops. Not a single vehicle became stuck. I crossed the river in the lead vehicle. I signalled to an IFV, and it made it across. Then I saw a KrAZ appear, followed by the Ural trucks. All right, I thought, everyone would make it… I contacted Liulka by radio: "Call me as soon as the rear of the column gets across, so I can stop worrying." Fifteen or twenty minutes later, I received word that everyone had crossed.
— Another battalion from your brigade nevertheless went through Russia…
— No one can now judge whether anyone was right or wrong in that situation. Perhaps I was partly to blame. I did not tell them that I had decided to attempt a breakout after all, rather than go with everyone else as agreed. But by then, they were already crossing the border. Ivan Voitenko, who was the battalion commander at the time, and I remain in contact and are friends.
Ivan told me: "Why didn’t you say anything? Perhaps some of the officers would have broken out with you." I replied: "Ivan, didn’t you see what was happening then?" Ultimately, we understood each other. I also spoke with Dmytro Ustilko, who is now chief of staff of the 14th Brigade. Sasha Okhrimenko called me from Russia. It was in the morning, after we had passed Zelenopillia. He said: "Go on, guys. God be with you, and may God protect you! We know it is much harder for you."
"I STILL DREAM OF COMPLETING THE MISSION AND REACHING IZVARYNE"
— Almost immediately after this breakout, you left to study…
— Some people even said at the time that, roughly speaking, I had abandoned everything. First, I had submitted my application to Hryshchenko back in 2013 because I planned to enrol in 2014. After everything I had experienced that spring and summer, I will admit that it was difficult to return. Perhaps I was even somewhat demoralised. I realised this when I reached peaceful territory in the Zaporizhzhia region and finally relaxed. Only then did I fully grasp what had happened. When the minister flew to Melitopol for a meeting and asked what I was thinking about, I said that I wanted to enrol at the university. Although my name was already on the list. While we were still encircled in Chervonopartyzansk, Volodymyr Ivanovych Kharabara, the head of the course, called me and asked: "Where will you live? Are you bringing your family with you?" In other words, I had already been admitted by then. As for those who said that I had run away and abandoned my battalion… One of those generals later apologised, after seeing the results of my work in the 58th Brigade.
I studied full-time for seven months. Then Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Viktorovych Haraz, the commander of the 30th Brigade, offered me the position of chief of staff. I did not even consult anyone. I knew my wife would support me. And I was already drawn back to the front. It took me about two months to recover. I transferred to distance learning. The brigade was holding defensive positions at the time and had its own area of responsibility. I saw how much the army had changed while I was studying. I kept telling everyone emotionally: "You’ve all become spoiled here! You have everything – fuel, food, water, accommodation, artillery and ammunition!" I remembered how we had begun fighting…
— After that, you were appointed commander of the 58th Brigade… And in that position, you took up positions near Horlivka. What are you proud of from that rotation?
— Yes, our brigade took over the positions of the 24th Brigade. The soldiers under Valerii Hudz, who commanded the brigade at the time, had retaken Shumy, and we went on to hold the area.
In the nearly three years that I commanded the brigade, there was not a single suicide. I addressed the issue of that dead end from which there seems to be no escape at every formation and every meeting. I kept telling people that there are no issues, problems, or situations in our lives that cannot be resolved. This has all been experienced and proven. If you are facing family or financial problems, bullying within your unit, or any other personal issues, come to us, and we will help. Do not remain silent. Talk about the problem – to your commander, someone you trust, or the higher command if it cannot be resolved locally. The main thing is to get a person thinking and talking and help them understand that there is a way out of that dead end. Sometimes, someone simply needs to tell a person that there is a way out and give them a chance to break that cycle of shutting themselves away. We discussed these things. I think it produced a positive result.
— But combat losses are impossible to avoid. It is war…
— Every fallen soldier remains in my memory; every loss hurts. They are all dear to me, all close to my heart. Human life is the most precious thing there is. Every one of them has a family, children, parents… At Shumy and Pivdenne, everything was working against us. The 15th Battalion therefore suffered very heavy losses. One soldier was killed during my rotation, and another 18 or 19 after I had left the brigade. Around 40 to 45 were wounded.
— Do you wish to return to the Luhansk region one day, to the very places from which you broke out?
— I do, and you probably know that!
My dream is to have a smoke at the Izvaryne checkpoint with the soldiers and officers who were with me back then. At the time, we were ordered to move in and take control of the Izvaryne checkpoint. We did not accomplish that mission. Perhaps it was for the best that we did not, because it would have come at a much greater cost in human lives.
The enemy already had the area zeroed in. They had amassed a great deal of equipment there, along with mercenaries, Cossacks, Russians, and regular military personnel. Given the terrain there, if we had gone in and crossed the river—which runs through the village of Vlasivka—we would not have made it back out. We fell 40 kilometres short of Izvaryne, and Krasnodon was teeming with that filth. Had we crossed the river, we probably would have remained there forever. Incidentally, when Oleksandr Porkhun attempted to advance along the border, his unit came under such intense mortar and artillery fire that they had to turn back. Later, the late Yura Kovalenko of the 3rd Special Forces Regiment, call sign Putnik, tried to reach it. He was given the same mission. They reached the bridge, but it collapsed right in front of them — it had been blown up. So perhaps it was for the best that we did not go in.
— But you still want to accomplish that mission?
— Yes. I will light a Cuban cigar there, — Mykhailo Vasylovych laughs.
— But you come from a completely different part of Ukraine. You have no need for the Luhansk and Donetsk regions at all…
— No, no, no. This is our land. Our land! It is our sovereign, indivisible territory. No matter what the Muscovites invent, rewrite or distort about history – whether Crimea was supposedly given away or not, whether Ukraine existed or not – they can forget it, as the saying goes. This is our land. Victory will be ours. Strength lies in truth, as they say, and the truth is on our side.
"UKRAINE IS HEAVEN ON EARTH"
— When your daughter was born, you were already serving…
— …as a brigade commander.
— Did you get to see her grow up at all?
— Only over the phone… Aniuta was born on 27 November 2017. At the time, we were carrying out missions in our sector on the Sievierodonetsk axis, between Triokhizbenka and Krymske.
My wife called me that evening and said: "Don’t worry, we’re going to bed. I’m not feeling very well." But she was already preparing to go to the maternity hospital. She had taken our little boy to his godparents in Bila Tserkva, gone to the hospital herself, and then called me.
Aniuta was born at 1:55 a.m. (my car had the same number, 0155). My wife called at around two in the morning: "Mishunia, we have a baby girl!" She had wanted a daughter so badly because our eldest was a boy. I wanted a son named Ivan, while she wanted a daughter named Anna – Aniuta – and God gave her to us. They would not let me leave to see my family that morning, but by the evening I had reached the maternity hospital. Our little girl was initially given some worrying diagnoses, and we were terribly anxious. We contacted the well-known volunteer and cardiologist Yulia Kuzmenko because her heart needed to be examined. She was wonderful and helped us so much at the time. Thank God, our little princess is healthy.
— Does your wife often ask: "When are you finally going to stay home?"
— She knew who I was… After graduating, I was supposed to become head of the training directorate at Operational Command North. I faithfully served there for five days. On the sixth, I received an order from the minister, packed my things, and left for Chasiv Yar in the Donbas. And my wife? She understands that this is my life, our shared destiny. I am grateful for her patience. She is wonderful, a true officer’s wife. She has nerves of steel.
— Does your son want to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the military?
— A few years ago, he told me: "Dad, I want to become an officer, but you won’t let me." He was four years old in 2014. When we saw each other, he hugged me so tightly, clung to my neck, and cried for such a long time… Children sense everything, no matter how young they are.
— Are you afraid that your son may also have to fight one day? That is why victory must be achieved as soon as possible.
— We must win so that no children have to fight, not only my son. Everyone else’s children are just as precious, and unfortunately, children sometimes die because of this war.
— Your son said that you would not allow him to become an officer. Why?
— I will not stand in the way of any path he chooses. Nor will I impose anything on him. But he has already said that he wants to become a surgeon. I am happy that my child said that.
— That may still change as he grows up.
— Yes, everything may change.
— Why a surgeon in particular? What influenced him?
— I do not know. Perhaps it is a desire to save someone’s life or to do good. But he has been saying for several years now that he wants to become a surgeon. My wife and I are delighted. Perhaps these are still childhood dreams, but I myself had wanted to study at the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Forces since the seventh or eighth grade – and I did.
— Which part of Ukraine do you love most? What does Ukraine mean to you?
— This is what I think… I tell many people this, and they all agree: we live in heaven on Earth, a place with four distinct seasons that we can experience in full. There are no hurricanes, tsunamis, or permafrost here. As Bykov once said: "You flew over my Ukraine today – everything here is special. The air is special, the sun is special, every little cloud is special, every blade of grass is special."
I love the Khmelnytskyi region most of all, particularly the village of Bila in the Chemerivtsi district. It makes you want to kiss the ground there. It is a beautiful area – the Podillian Tovtry. I believe that is where the Carpathians begin. The Smotrych River flows near the village. Ukraine is heaven on Earth.
Photo: Mykhailo Drapatyi receives the People’s Hero of Ukraine award in Chernivtsi on 16 March 2016. He is standing between the two uniformed men crouching in the foreground.
Violetta Kirtoka, Censor.NET
