“Some cheered, but some people were not happy to see us,” says a Ukrainian special forces soldier.

A report says that western weapons and diversionary tactics helped Ukrainian forces take back 1,000 square miles of land in the northeast of their country.

While Ukrainian soldiers have reported being swamped by happy people in freed districts, being handed whiskey and pancakes, and being kissed by women, this is only part of the narrative. Some civilians apparently did not welcome the Ukrainian military and were disappointed to see Vladimir Putin’s men leaving, despite the fact that the majority of pro-Kremlin locals left with the retreating Russian troops.

A Ukrainian special forces soldier who spoke to The Times claimed that in the areas they had retaken, they had encountered “50-50” support and resistance.

“Honestly, it was 50-50,” he added.

“Some cheered, but some people were not happy to see us.

“They questioned ‘why did you come?,” They continue to back Russia.

“They’re brainwashed by their propaganda.”

The Ukrainian troops are not taking any chances with the people who stayed behind when Russia was in charge.

Rumors claim that Russian forces are disguising themselves as civilians, blending in with the neighbourhood, rather than fleeing.

A second problem is that some of the Russian soldiers are from the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), a pro-Russian region that Kyiv still claims as its own.

Note that Ukraine has officially liberated all of this highlighted area as of today. pic.twitter.com/ZU5MdaxuYR

— Andrew Perpetua (@AndrewPerpetua) September 18, 2022

Ukrainian defenders pulling down Russian and Soviet symbols in recently liberated parts of Kharkiv Oblast pic.twitter.com/iRamwY9sdH

— Giorgi Revishvili (@revishvilig) September 17, 2022

Many of them have Ukrainian passports as a result.

A Ukrainian soldier who was stationed near Kharkiv told The Times that it was often hard to tell who the DPR troops were.

“They think they can blend in, and it’s very hard to tell them apart sometimes,” he said.

“We caught one from the DPR at a checkpoint, and he’s with the intelligence now.” 

Every civilian who departs the liberated areas is subjected to a filtering process by Ukrainian security forces, which might take minutes, hours, or even days depending on the area.

It comes as accusations of cruelty and repression have emerged from previously occupied Russian territory.

Last week, 445 bodies—both civilian and military—were said to have been found in a forest close to the city of Izyum by Ukrainian authorities.

Image Credit: Getty

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