Irish Examiner view: Ukraine war memoir is important testimony

Russian paratrooper’s war memoir is a devastating critique of that army's morale as the invasion of Ukraine continues

Rockets launched from Russia's Belgorod region as seen from Kharkiv, Ukraine, last Monday. 'ZOV' by Pavel Filatyev is the first book from the front lines of the war but it won't be the last. Picture: Vadim Belikov/AP

War literature can have a decisive influence on how protagonists and civilian populations view conflict — All Quiet on the Western Front, Homage to Catalonia, The Naked and the Dead, The Kite Runner — all have helped to shape our opinions on defining wars in the past two centuries.

It is very early for accounts to emerge from Ukraine, but they are on their way, hurried along by social media.

ZOV, named for the tactical markings painted on Russian military vehicles, by ex-paratrooper Pavel Filatyev, is a 141-page memoir of how his 56th Guards air assault regiment was sent to mainland Ukraine from Crimea, entered Kherson, captured the seaport, and dug in under heavy artillery fire for more than a month near Mykolaiv.

It is a devastating critique of Russian morale, with gruelling descriptions of the behaviour of the invading troops. It may be the first, but it will not be the last, testimony.