Ukraine Interior Ministry adviser Anton Gerashchenko has shared footage of a Ukrainian female soldier, bearing a swastika-like symbol.
The soldier, who apparently had returned from the frontlines of the ongoing conflict with Russia, is seen being reunited with her daughter and giving her toy unicorns. Amid the emotional encounter, a swastika-style patch – a rounded solar cross with additional elements – can be clearly seen on the woman’s backpack. Similar emblems were used by several Waffen-SS units in Nazi Germany during WW2.
“This is what we are fighting for,” Gerashchenko captioned the video.
While Moscow has repeatedly outlined the need to “denazify” Ukraine, Kiev has consistently denied having any neo-Nazi elements in the country’s society and military.
Russia attacked the neighboring state in late February, following Ukraine’s failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow’s eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German- and French-brokered protocols were designed to give the regions special status within the Ukrainian state.
The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.