OUTFRONT now.
Konstantin Yefremov,
the former Russian
senior lieutenant
who is seeking
asylum in the US
after serving in Ukraine.
He is the most senior officer
to speak openly about what he saw there.
And Konstantin, I appreciate your time.
You shared with us
your military ID card,
which I'm
going to show viewers on the screen
now that shows
you were made a lieutenant in 2017
and obviously you served in Ukraine.
I know you still speak
with Russian soldiers
who are there fighting now.
What are they telling you about
what's happening on the ground?
Sochi.
Mullen College, Columbia.
Well, I have to say that
there are only very few people
that I have been in contact with
because you can imagine
just talking to me is already
that puts them
at the risk of high danger.
In fact,
after this interview
and just opening up,
I can imagine tomorrow
or may just as well even today,
they will start talking to me.
And the last time I talked to them,
there wasn't much
they could share with me.
Just hunger cold.
They're their circumstances.
Their conditions are very dire.
You talk about dire conditions.
And I know you shared with us
some photos,
Konstantin, that you say
are from your time fighting in Ukraine.
And we've heard
you talk about them being hungry.
We hear about Russian soldiers
not having enough food
that happened to you.
You took a picture of this rabbit
that you had to hunt for food
while you were there,
and then you boiled it
in a bucket to eat.
And you sent us that photo as well.
What is morale
like right now for the troops?
I know you're describing it as dire
physical on the hood of
everyone or nearly everyone
who is there and a sense
that what's happening is wrong,
that it's all very wrong
and they truly do not believe
Putin's fables about
Ukraine's threat of invasion.
And I'd like to say that
the very fact that they are in trenches
and was just caused
by their living situation,
for many of them, their military service
is their means of living and basically
they only have one choice.
It's either
they are family
and children end up on the streets
or they have to be in the trenches
and now after the after the mobilization,
many of them
in general
after the mobilization,
they cannot even resign.
And otherwise
they'll be sent to prison
for seven, ten years.
So basically, there is no choice.
They either have to
remain there or find ways to flee.
So like I've already said,
the circumstances are dire
and it usually or sealed up if
sort of necessary. Army
You know,
obviously some of what
has happened on the ground,
you know,
we know about horrific
war crimes
committed
by Russian forces
across the entire state of this war.
You shared a video or photo
with us in front of a building in Ukraine
where you say that
Ukrainian prisoners were tortured.
What did you see happen
Yeah, we do.
I personally
saw how the deputy commander of the unit,
whose name is Schaitberger, tortured
and threatened with sexual violence,
prisoners of war from the 36
Navy Division.
Were there others?
Konstantin who had issues with this?
Because obviously many soldiers
were participating in going along
Yeah.
And I cannot say that
anyone would have dared to say anything
to this Colonel
in any way
or could have showed
their disapproval anything.
Because just like he shot
that Ukrainian prisoner of war,
he could have easily shot me
or anyone else
who said that
they didn't agree with this.
Besides, he was drunk nonstop,
and he was driving around
the nearby villages
where there were other prisoners of war.
As far as I know, there were about
20 others, Ukrainian prisoners or boys.
But I myself
and was a witness of interrogations
of three Ukrainian prisoners of war.
You tried to resign,
Konstantin, from the army.
You ended up being dismissed
because you refused to return to Ukraine.
And they sent you a document.
You shared it with us.
And let me just read part of it
to our viewers.
This serviceman refused
to go to the territory of Ukraine
to perform his service in combat mission.
Thereby, senior lieutenant
from up
Konstantin Vladimirovich,
committed a gross disciplinary offense
expressed by his evasion
from his duties of military service.
Konstantin,
you are now hoping to seek asylum
in the United States.
You have left Russia.
Why do you
think the United
States should grant you asylum Yes.
First, Sascha,
if a strong that is democracy,
I believe that
the United States of America
is the country of democracy
where human rights are upheld.
And I've already been in Mexico for
a month.
And over this period of time,
I've been trying to
seek an appointment
with the border guards.
And unfortunately,
so far, my efforts have been in vain.
And therefore, I'm
I addressed
mass media and human rights
advocates, advocates
to support me in seeking political asylum
items, to pursue political leadership
Konstantin, thank you
so very much for your time.
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