The brigade reported that these soldiers—exhausted, hungry, desperate, and abandoned by their own commanders—are increasingly realizing they have no chance of survival and that all the horror stories about torture in captivity are lies. They share their impressions openly, without coercion. Here are excerpts from their direct statements:Aleksandr Vladimirovich, born 1993, Ulyanovsk:“Guys, I want to address you. The Ukrainian Armed Forces treat young prisoners very well. They feed us, let us use the bathroom, and sometimes allow us to contact our families. There is no propaganda or torture like you’ve heard about.”“But our own army… they use us as cannon fodder. Poor training, inhumane treatment. You won’t do anything ‘for the country’—they just throw you to your death.”Abdullah Mazravliiovich, Tashkent region, Uzbekistan:“Look at me. If it weren’t for Ukrainian soldiers, I would have lost my leg and arm. They gave me medical care and treated me humanely. Don’t believe those who say they’ll cut you or shoot you in the back—that’s a lie.”Sergey Nikolayevich, Orenburg region:“This is not our land. This is not our war. Guys, put down your weapons and go home. Life is the most precious thing. I was deceived by my commanders—they promised contract completion but sent me to an assault group. The very next day, I was captured.”Another prisoner from Tajikistan, living in Tula, said:“They told us that where they sent us, there was nobody there. But in reality, there were many Ukrainian soldiers. Out of 30 men, only two survived. They gave us six grenades each and ordered us to blow ourselves up rather than surrender. They said Ukrainians cut off ears and torture prisoners. That was a lie.”“If you want to live, surrender. You matter—to your children, parents, wives.”Russian soldiers who have faced the realities of war and been captured by the Ukrainian Armed Forces unanimously say it’s better to surrender than die in vain. Their testimony is the most convincing proof that Russian propaganda deceives its own troops.President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine has returned 5,857 people alive from Russian captivity since the start of Russian full-scale invasion.