«All wars on earth have ended in turmoil."

Victory Day has long since lost its meaning as a holiday "with tears in our eyes." Official rhetoric has reduced it to a ostentatious victory frenzy.

The terrible truth about war and the suffering it brings to people is being hidden in pompous events, marches and concerts.

Letters of a Krasnoyarsk writer VictorAstafieva — This is a frontline soldier's frank, confessional view of the war. He didn't try to soften or embellish what he saw: he called it a "monstrous crime" and spoke of it with utter, almost frightening honesty. His lines still resonate with us today.

We publish excerpts from these letters as a reminder: war is not normal, even if people begin to get used to it.