New Delhi: “See you tomorrow. I love you. I miss you” — these were the final words that 36-year-old Denis Tkach, the ‘first‘ Ukrainian soldier who lost his life in the Russia-Ukraine war, told his wife Oksana (known by her first name) over a phone call on 23 February. A promise he could not keep.
Four hours later, on 24 February 2022, Tkach, who was stationed at a checkpoint on the Russia-Ukraine border in Zorynivka, died from bullet injuries by “unseen Russian assailants”.
The Ukrainian border patrol has confirmed that the Russian attack on Zorynivka was the first on Ukrainian soil that morning and Tkach the first casualty, The Guardian reported.
An hour after Tkach’s death, Russian President Vladimir Putin had declared a “special military operation” on Ukraine – the first official declaration of the now year-long conflict between the two nations that has seen hundreds displaced and countless dead.
Oksana, who spoke to The Guardian, gives a stark reminder of what wars look like, whichever side you are on.
The beginnings of a war
The Guardian report narrates how Ukrainian soldiers stationed at Zorynivka had received a call on 24 February last year about some “unidentified armed men” being spotted near the border. Tkach had reportedly spotted an army, covered under snow, approaching towards the border post and decided to wait for orders.
Meanwhile, the Russians, aware that they had been spotted, began indiscriminate firing. A Ukrainian staff sergeant, who was stationed 300 metres away from the border post, told The Guardian how he had to flee for his life.
“I said to my junior, something’s not right. And he said: ‘What’s not right?’ Right after that, someone spoke through a loudspeaker, and we heard them clearly, two times: ‘If you lay down your weapons and come out with your hands in the air, nothing will threaten your life’”, the sergeant (who has not been identified) told The Guardian.
Nearby villages were soon put on alert. The war had begun.
Tkach’s body was found in the middle of a road in Zorynivka, by Oksana.
Oksana, like many others, could not accept the invasion. But was forced to leave their village, Mykilske, along with their two children, in August last year. Mykilske is located five miles to the north-northwest of the checkpoint where Tkach was killed.
When it’s a war – who do you blame?
For 29-year-old Oksana, the wounds of Tkach’s death are still fresh. She had witnessed it all – carrying her husband’s bullet-ridden body back home from the spot, cleaning his injuries with cotton swabs, holding a funeral, leaving her home and farm behind to live in Russia. Tkach had decided to only sign up for one year in the military, she said.
Oksana also remembered how “tensions were high” soon after separatists, backed by Russia, declared Donetsk and Luhansk as independent territories, even before the war had really begun.
Speaking to The Guardian, Oksana also said that Tkach’s commander had “submitted to Russian rule”. But what was “most upsetting” for her was to hear Tkach’s parents and sister say that they were “liberated” after having moved to Russia. She also said it was “intolerable to hear” his parents question whether it was indeed the Russians that killed Tkach.
Today, she has a medal awarded to Tkach posthumously by the Ukrainian government for his bravery. When asked how she felt about it, Oksana only responded by saying, “I feel lost”.