“I lost the first battle, I will win the next one”. To speak to the Majorcan newspaper Last minuteAnd Taras Ostapchuk55, the chief engineer who a Port Adrianoa small harbor a few kilometers from Palma de Mallorcaattempted to sink the yacht he was working on and which he belongs to Alexander Mijeev, a Russian tycoon who produces armaments for the state. And then: he lost the first battle, says Ostapchuk, and that is, he did not manage to sink the luxury mega-boat and was also arrested. But the second battle, that of defending one’s country from the Russian invasion, is just starting now. Immediately after being released, Ostapchuk took a flight to Warsawin Polandwith the intention of taking a train or a bus in the opposite direction to that of tens of thousands of his compatriots.
“For my country I will do what it takes” he swears to another Majorcan newspaper, The newspaper. “Of course I’m going to fight, it is my duty”He tells the island’s newspapers. “When I get to the first city of Ukraine – he says before leaving a Last minute – I will look for a military commander and ask if there is any need for me. I said to myself: what’s the point of having a job if I don’t have a country? Yes, of course, I had a good job as an engineer officer on the boat and a good salary, but I’m going to fight for my country. I lost my job, but that’s not a problem. I will not lose my country. I am not a hero, I am an old man, but I have a lot of experience in mechanics. I have never taken a weapon, but if necessary I will. Why not?”.
But how did his decision to sink the Lady Anastasia, Mijeev’s luxury yacht docked for 5 months in the marina of the main Balearic island? Ostapchuk – 54, Lady Anastasia’s engineer officer for 10 years – was struck by the news he was reading on his cell phone, the escalation that led Moscow troops to march towards Kiev. He sees the image of a Russian missile hitting some houses in the Ukrainian capital and reminds him of the building where he lives. “From my window – he still says to the newspaper Last minute – I see the Ukrainian Parliament. I wondered what would remain of my apartment because it is located in a similar position ”to the one seen on the cell phone.
It is at that point that the sailor decides to take revenge on his boss: he opens several valves to bring water to the yacht of the defense magnate, a boat of 48 meters worth 7 million euros. Ostapchuk warns the rest of the crew so that they could get to safety, three of his colleagues turn against him. He replies that they too are Ukrainians and that their homeland had suffered an attack with missiles produced by the owner of that yacht. Mijeev, 61, former head of the Russian Helicopter Corporation which took over the Rostec, Russian defense giant. In Mallorca, says the former sailor of him, he also owns two villas and another yacht. “I did it to support my country – he explains to Majorca Newspaper – In any case, I didn’t have a good relationship with my boss, not at all ”. There had also been some differences, at other times. “My whole family is in Ukraine, luckily in a secret place”. War doesn’t scare him, he says. At least, no more than staying in Mallorca to see the destruction of his land from afar. “For me I am not afraid, we must win this battle”.