He was totally hammered when he went to sign Russia's army contract. A captured Russian soldier, Mikhail Krasnachokov, taken by paratroopers of Ukraine's 79th Brigade, has explained the reason behind his wish to take part in the killing of the Ukrainians, as per ArmyInform. 

His motivation was money: working as a tractor driver, he earned $495 but had to give most of it to alimony.

"My wife tried to stop me, but I didn't listen — I was drunk," the Russian admitted.

At the same time, Ukrainian troops emphasize that despite Russia's degradation, the enemy should not be underestimated, as there are countless soldiers like him. Ukrainian paratroopers refer to this as the "dangerous power of numbers."

Contract signed over vodka

The captive, Krasnachokov, born in 1983, is from the Altai region. 

"I was at home, drinking vodka, got completely drunk, woke up in the morning, nursed a hangover, and went to the military enlistment office — already totally drunk," he recalls.

He signed the contract on 17 November, and the next day was sent for "training," which lasted three months.

"In the morning, we rode motorcycles, then dug trenches. After lunch — training ground, walking through trenches without ammunition, learning how to 'assault,'" the Russian POW remembers.

According to him, the unit was typical for the Russian army: "All alcoholics, one drug addict."

Regret came fast

"I regretted it immediately, as soon as they took us away," he says.

Krasnachokov reveals that the command intimidated soldiers to prevent them from refusing to fight.

"If you say you don't want to go, they'll crush their own tanks on you. Those who refused to advance were given TM mines to carry. Refuse — they shot you on the spot," he says. 

His unit, the 5th Motorized Rifle Battalion, was ordered to "hold the defense."

"Four motorcycles went one by one. Two blew up, didn't make it. The first time mortars started hitting us — our own. I was completely shocked," he remembers. 

After one motorcycle exploded, he was injured by shrapnel in his arm. He switched to another bike, and together they made their way to the basement.

"We stayed in the basement for four days. On the fourth day, your troops began clearing operations. They shouted, 'Who's here? Surrender!' — and we shouted back, 'We surrender!'"

The captive confirmed that after capture, Ukrainian troops did not beat him, feed him, give him water, or allow him to smoke.

"I tell my countrymen: don't sign a contract. That money isn't worth your life. They won't show this on TV," the Russian soldier concludes. 

Moscow sets up a secret Russian underwater network in the Baltic. Russian intelligence agencies have turned the site of the MS Estonia ferry disaster in the Baltic Sea into a base for underwater espionage, Yle reports. 

German media outlets Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Westdeutscher Rundfunk, and Süddeutsche Zeitung investigated and concluded that Russia is using the ferry wreck, which is off-limits to divers, as a training area for underwater operations.

Sunken ferry becomes a training ground for spying

Moreover, the remains of the ship are likely being used to host spy equipment, enabling preparation for secret missions in the Baltic Sea.

Analysts emphasize that this location is strategically advantageous: it is close to shipping lanes, within NATO countries' influence zone, yet designated as a “quiet zone” where diving is prohibited. It is also noted that some NATO countries are aware of the spy equipment on the sunken ship, though this has not been publicly confirmed.

Rumors of a secret underwater base have circulated for years

Swedish broadcaster SVT, in cooperation with NDR and other international media partners, reported as part of the “Russian Secrets” project that Russia has been building a covert network to monitor NATO countries for several years.

Sunken vessels are harder to detect than the seabed

One sign of this activity has been incidents involving cut telecommunications lines in the Baltic. Unlike devices placed directly on the seabed, equipment attached to a sunken ship is much harder to detect.

Western intelligence sources also believe that similar operations are occurring at sites of sunken aircraft.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia employed oil tankers to launch and control drones targeting European nations.

Zelenskyy: Russians use tankers to launch drones across Europe