Twelve years ago, in March 2014, Russian hybrid forces began seizing government institutions in Donbas. Prior to that, Russian “little green men” annexed Crimea, and then gradually began occupying Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Ukrainian cities resisted, including the million-plus city of Donetsk.
The Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers publishes images by Donetsk photographer Serhii Vahanov. Before his eyes, pro-Russian mercenaries took Donetsk away from Ukrainians—and took his home away from him.
The beginning of the decade-long occupation
After Yanukovych fled during the Revolution of Dignity, pro-Russian forces became more active in Ukraine’s southern and eastern regions. They organized rallies with the participation of people brought in from Russia, demanding federalization and separation from Ukraine.
On 5 March 2014, Donetsk hosted the largest pro-Ukrainian rally under the slogan “10,000 brave for 45 million united.” The large-scale action significantly overshadowed the paid pro-Russian rallies with slogans like “Hear Donbas.” Three years later, this date would officially become the Day of Civil Resistance of Donbas to the Russian occupation.
It was the last peaceful rally in the city. A week later, on 13 March, during a protest action, civic activist and Revolution of Dignity participant, 22-year-old Dmytro Cherniavskyi, was killed. Ukrainian law enforcement did not disperse the pro-Russian mercenaries; instead, they silently watched as the attackers assaulted peaceful activists with various weapons—knives, rebar, bats, and more. Pro-Ukrainian rallies in the East continued until 28 April 2014. But then came occupation and war—ongoing to this day.Donetsk, 2014. Photo by Serhii Vahanov
“The security forces turned out to be weak forces”
Before the eyes of photographer Serhii Vahanov, Russians were taking away the city where he had lived for 15 years. His Donetsk was occupied gradually. First, pro-Russian activists came out on weekends; then they moved on to seizing administrative buildings.
Back then I didn’t have the feeling that we would lose Donetsk for 10 years, Serhii says. From the very beginning, my friends and I expected our security forces to restore order somehow. Unfortunately, the security forces turned out to be weak forces. There were very many traitors. It was a hybrid attack that no one was ready for—neither the local authorities nor the authorities in Kyiv. They gradually seized the city and the oblast. It felt like some kind of snake was strangling you, but slowly. It wasn’t like—bang, and that’s it. First, on weekends, they held rallies. Then they began seizing the police, the prosecutor’s office, the Security Service, and military units. There was no resistance from the security forces at all. That was the scariest thing. For quite a long time there was a period when there were barricades around the seized Donetsk regional administration—they were copying the Maidan.
The Proclamation of the “DPR”
On 7 April 2014 in Donetsk, a crowd of pro-Russian mercenaries seized the regional administration building, declaring the creation of the so-called “Donetsk People’s Republic” (DPR). A day earlier, on 6 April, the same scenario unfolded in Kharkiv, where the “Kharkiv People’s Republic” (KhPR) was proclaimed—but it lasted only one day.
Serhii Vahanov followed the events in both cities, hoping that the “DPR” would share the fate of the “KhPR”—that is, would end in failure.
“We were waiting for help. And I remember how, in Kharkiv, the police special unit drove these pro-Russian people out of the regional administration building. We were waiting for the same thing to happen in Donetsk. We waited the next day, too. And nothing happened,” the photographer doesn’t hide his disappointment.
Serhii emphasizes that there were a lot of outsiders in Donetsk. He recalls it was easy to tell them apart from locals:
They asked where the toilets were. They didn’t know their way around the city at all. They went to seize the regional police, but stopped by the city police instead. The same happened with the prosecutor’s offices. I’m not saying there weren’t Donetsk locals there, but truly a lot of outsiders were brought in.
Later, Moscow would begin using the “DPR” as an instrument to control Ukrainian territories as part of preparing and unleashing a larger war.
Serhii recalls these events with pain. He admits that the only thing that helped him endure it all—at least somehow—were antidepressants. The photographer continued documenting everything that was happening in the city until the very last moment, even after the militants had already proclaimed themselves the “authorities.” On 5 July 2014, Igor Girkin entered Donetsk. He fled there from neighboring Sloviansk, which the Armed Forces of Ukraine liberated on 4 July.
Serhii Vahanov went to photograph the separatist leader’s press conference, even though before Girkin arrived there were already plenty of Russian militants in the city:
There were Chechens, Ossetians, Don Cossacks, and all that assorted scum. And by 10 July both administrations had already been seized, and Girkin held a press conference.
Before the conference, Serhii was detained by unknown people who said they appreciated his professionalism and “did not recommend working for the enemies”—that is, for Ukraine. The photographer was offered work at the Russian Ministry of Defense TV channel “Zvezda.”
I told them, “What if I refuse?” They answered, “Then you’ll be digging trenches for free!” I said I had asthma and showed them my inhaler. And they told me, “Then you’ll die sooner.” While they were waiting for a commander to decide my case, I asked to go photograph Girkin. They let me go and said they’d find me later. But I finished the shoot, flew home, packed my things, and left for Mariupol, — Serhii says.
Serhii Vahanov lived in Mariupol until March 2022. Once again, he had to leave his city because of the occupiers.
I finished school in Mariupol. Then I worked for 15 years as a doctor in Avdiivka. After that, I went into journalism and lived in Donetsk for 15 years, working as a photographer and videographer. All of my cities are now either occupied or destroyed. All of my geography stayed there.
As a reminder, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers has launched a series dedicated to key events of Russia’s war against Ukraine, publishing memories and photographs by Ukrainian documentary photographers.
Матеріал створено за підтримки The Fritt Ord Foundation.
Serhii Vahanov is a Ukrainian reportage and documentary photographer, born in 1958. He graduated from the Donetsk Medical Institute and then worked for 15 years as a traumatologist in Avdiivka. Since 1999, he worked as a staff photographer in Donetsk. After the occupation, he moved to Mariupol, where in 2022 he endured the siege of the city.
Photographer’s social media: Facebook
Worked on the piece:
Topic researcher, text author: Vira Labych
Photo editor: Olha Kovalova
Literary editor: Yuliia Futei
