Schools in Crimea honour former students killed in Ukraine fighting

Record ID: 1688719

  • Title: Schools in Crimea honour former students killed in Ukraine fighting
  • Date: 10th September 2022
  • Summary: SAKY, CRIMEA (SEPTEMBER 9, 2022) (Reuters) STUDENTS STANDING AT SCHOOL ENTRANCE, CADETS OPENING MEMORIAL MURALS, MUISC HEARD IN BACKGROUND CADETS STANDING OUTSIDE SCHOOL AS THEY HOLD A GUARD OF HONOUR VARIOUS OF MEMORIAL MURALS IN HONOUR OF SOLDIERS KILLED IN UKRAINE FIGHTING, FORMER SCHOOL STUDENTS VARIOUS OF RELATIVES OF FALLEN SOLDIERS LAYING FLOWERS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FATHER OF KILLED SOLDIER, ALEXANDER VARAVIN, SAYING: "He was born into a family of military service members. He chose the military profession consciously. While doing military training he learned a lot of professions that helped him in life, I mean military professions. And during the special military operation ordered by our commander-in-chief (the president) he left to do his duty. And he got killed fulfilling his military duty, which he did with honour." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE HONOURING FORMER STUDENTS, LAYING FLOWERS FLOWERS IN HANDS VARIOUS OF MOURNERS' FACES, PEOPLE CRYING (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) BEST FRIEND OF KILLED SOLDIER, NASTYA MEDLOVETS, SAYING: "He was a great friend. No matter where he was in Crimea or elsewhere, you could always gave him a call for example, my car evacuated, and he would drop all he was doing at the moment to come and help. He was a very good guy." PERSONNEL FIRING SHOTS OF HONOUR CADETS MARCHING HOLDING FLAGS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) BEST FRIEND OF KILLED SOLDIER, NASTYA MEDLOVETS, SAYING: "Yes, I think we need to do events like this attracting more youth here, people need to know their heroes. We don't have a full mobilization and not everybody is aware of what's going on, so this way they will understand better that we have such great guys (in military service). VARIOUS OF PEOPLE STANDING LISTENING TO RUSSIAN ANTHEM (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FATHER OF KILLED SOLDIER, ALEXANDER VARAVIN, SAYING: "We are the same people - the Slavic people, so he is fighting not against Ukraine, he is fighting for the people. It so happed that people are in Ukraine, in DPR, in LPR. Well, it so happened that the Nazi-ideology has risen again." RIBBON ON FLOWERS, READING (Russian): "IN EVERLASTING MEMORY" (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MOTHER OF KILLED SOLDIER, INNA VARAVINA, SAYING: "This special operation should go to the end. The boys are defending us. So that we live, so that there's no quarrel between the peoples. If they are there, so it has to be that way." VARIOUS OF PILES OF FLOWERS IM MEMORY OF FORMER SCHOOL STUDENTS
  • Embargoed: 24th September 2022 10:32
  • Keywords: Crimea Russia Ukraine crisis memorial soldiers
  • Location: SAKY, CRIMEA
  • City: SAKY, CRIMEA
  • Country: Ukraine
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Europe
  • Reuters ID: LVA001410709092022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Two young soldiers who died fighting for Russia in Ukraine were honoured on Friday (September 9) with the unveiling of memorial plaques at the school they attended in Crimea.    
    Relatives, students and local officials held a ceremony to commemorate Denis Varavin and Yevgeny Petelko, with young people marching in an honour guard with a Russian tricolour flag and shots fired into the air to salute the two men's memory. 
    The inscriptions on both plaques read: "True to his oath, he perished while fulfilling his military duty in the course of the special military operation" - the term used by President Vladimir Putin to describe Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.    
    The mother of one of the dead men said she supported Russia's military goals.    
    "I think the fulfilment of this operation must go on right to the end. Our children are defending us. So that we can live," Nina Varavina said.    
    Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 in an annexation condemned as illegal by Kyiv and Western governments, and used the peninsula as a launchpad for its current campaign.    
    Moscow says the "special operation" is needed to defend Ukraine's Russian-speakers from persecution and prevent the West from using Ukraine to threaten Russia - allegations dismissed by Kyiv and the West as baseless pretexts for a war of aggression.    
    Russia says its military campaign in Ukraine is going to plan, but has not revealed the scale of its casualties.
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