"KHATYN"

From an early age, he practiced weightlifting and loved football (few people knew that he also adored watching figure skating). He began his military service on February 27, 2019, when he signed a contract. At first, he served in the 503rd Marine Battalion as a grenade launcher operator. On February 27, 2022, he was supposed to return home, but on February 24, 2022, the full-scale invasion began, and he remained in service. At that time, he was near Mariupol on a combat mission and was wounded. After that, he tried to transfer to the Territorial Defense Forces and sign up for efforts to break through to Mariupol. Things did not work out, and he stayed in the infantry. In July 2023, after 3–4 months of waiting, his application to join the National Guard of Ukraine “Azov” was approved (I still remember his joy that day 🥺). He became a mortarman in the 12th Special Purpose Brigade “Azov” of the National Guard of Ukraine. Over the years of service, he changed a lot. His views on life and his goals changed as well. He was surrounded by the best—brothers-in-arms, brothers, friends, and his wife. In the words of the commander of the 503rd Marine Battalion, call sign “Kaban,” a brother-in-arms and friend: “You could always rely on him. He was a person who never once backed down. A person who showed no mercy to the enemy. He wasn’t very religious, but he believed in Ukraine, in the idea of nationalism. He was a true son of Mariupol. There are only a few like him. A man of charisma. A man of fearlessness. A man—a WARRIOR. Thank you, Khatyn, for the whole path we walked together!” ——— In the words of the crew commander of the 12th Special Purpose Brigade “Azov” of the National Guard of Ukraine, call sign “Samed,” a brother-in-arms and friend: “Everyone knew him as someone with a sharp sense of humor. He had extensive combat experience—he was encircled, broke out, was wounded, took part in hard battles, but always returned to the ranks to destroy the enemy again. I was lucky to serve with him in the same crew during the last year, to be shoulder to shoulder with him on missions, to fight together. I witnessed many heroic acts on his part, but he himself never considered them heroic—for him it was everyday life, a routine combat task that had to be carried out.”