“HRUT”

Senior Soldier Volodymyr Zlatohurskyi, with the pseudonym “HRUT”, was killed on 29 February 2024 as a result of enemy mortar shelling near the village of Orlivka in Donetsk Oblast. He will be 31 forever. Volodymyr was born in Odesa region, in the settlement of Lymanske. He earned his first higher education in the specialty “Engineering of Hydraulic Structures” at Odesa National Maritime University. From 2016 to 2019, he served under contract and defended Ukraine’s independence in the ATO zone. Afterwards, he worked at the Illichivsk Ship Repair Plant and the Gdansk Shipyard. He played football, volleyball, and did track and field. Most recently, he was repairing ships in Singapore while working for the company “MSCCS Ukraine”. With the start of the full-scale war, he returned to Ukraine. In January 2023, Volodymyr joined the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade. In May, he sustained multiple injuries near Bakhmut. After returning to the ranks, he began training in sniper skills. At the same time, he was pursuing a second higher education, studying in the specialty “Ship Machinery” at Odesa National Maritime University. Later, Volodymyr became a sniper squad commander. The defender was awarded the distinction of the President of Ukraine “For Participation in the Anti-Terrorist Operation”, the distinctions of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “Khrest Khorobrykh” and “Golden Cross”, and the Ministry of Defence distinction “For Wounds”. “He liked weapons and military equipment. He loved studying and getting to the essence of any matter he took on. He had a principled character: for him there was no grey in the way he saw the world — only black or white. Volodia, as a multifaceted and глубокий person, inspired the spiritual and physical development of the people around him by his example. He loved reading science fiction, was interested in stand-up comedy and the work of artists of the Northern Renaissance, and played the guitar,” his sister Marichka said. According to his sister, Volodymyr chose the pseudonym himself. HRUT is a character from the film “Guardians of the Galaxy” who was quiet and often found himself in funny, ambiguous situations, sometimes creating additional problems, but always came to help his friends. That is exactly what Volodia was like — not very talkative, but reliable. The defender was laid to rest in his native settlement. He is survived by his mother, sister, and a large family.