War & Capital

In this episode I have the great honor of welcoming Oleh Krisenko, a Ukrainian war veteran who served ten years in Azov, from 2014 to 2024. Oleh went from acting in a children's theatre to the army, and when the full-scale invasion began he was running logistics for the regiment's headquarters in Mariupol. He tells me about being surrounded, why they chose to stay and fight so that Kyiv would stand, and almost three months defending the steel plant on one meal a day. We talk about why they finally surrendered, and about almost a year in Russian captivity, first near Donetsk and then in Taganrog, where beatings, electrocution and hunger were part of every day. Oleh also explains how his exchange happened, and why he wants Europe to remember the roughly 600 Azov soldiers who are still prisoners. This one is heavy, and I think it is important to hear.

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All opinions expressed are my own or those of my guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Swedish Armed Forces, the Swedish Air Force, or the Kingdom of Sweden.

0:00 Intro

0:50 Welcome and Oleh's background

7:26 Mariupol when the full-scale invasion began

11:38 Surrounded in the city

15:07 The decision to stay and fight

20:26 Defending the steel plant

29:20 Why they surrendered

33:02 The surrender and the first prison near Donetsk

43:05 Taganrog: beatings, torture and hunger

58:18 The exchange and the soldiers still in captivity

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