'Mama, this is so hard': Russian soldier's last message to his mother

At an emergency session of the United Nations General Assembly on the ongoing war between Ukraine-Russia, Ukraine's Ambassador read out text messages purportedly sent by a Russian soldier while in Ukraine to his mother. The text read, "Mom, I'm in Ukraine. There is a real war raging here. I am afraid. We are bombing all of the cities together. Even targeting civilians."

While exchanging the text, the Russian soldier's mother questioned his late response and asked him if she could send him a parcel. The soldier, in response, informed her that he was in Ukraine and wished to hang himself.

Before the war, the Russian soldier present in Crimea reportedly wrote the message to his mother back home, stating, "We were told that they (Ukrainians) would welcome us, but they are falling under our armoured vehicles. They are throwing themselves under the wheels and are not allowing us to pass." The text added, "They call us fascists. Mama, this is so hard." 

Ukraine's UN Ambassador, reading the messages, urged the assembly to "visualise the magnitude of the tragedy" occurring in Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24.

"Imagine next to you, next to each nameplate of every country in the present general assembly, more than 30 souls of killed Russian soldiers already," Ukraine's Ambassador stressed. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly urged Russian soldiers to leave Ukraine to save their own lives. Ukraine has emphasised the tragedy of the battle for young Russian soldiers in its message throughout the war, according to TIME correspondent Vera Bergengruen in a tweet.

So far, more than 4,500 Russian soldiers have been killed in the war, as per Ukraine.
 

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• Russia-Ukraine war
• Russia-Ukraine crisis