DONETSK, May 2. /TASS/. Obsolete Maxim machine guns dating back to early last century were retrieved from weapons depots inside a coalmine in Artyomovsk (Ukrainian name Bakhmut) to be supplied to Ukrainian troops, Stanislav, a former Ukrainian military officer who guarded the depot, told the media.

"I served in the Ukrainian army. At the Volodarsky coalmine there were warehouses with weapons: millions of pieces. Contrary to rumors, not everything was taken out in 2015. Small arms, grenade launchers, and Kalashnikov, Maxim machine-guns remained. When it all started, for two and a half months all this hardware was taken out. Truckloads of it, including Maxim machineguns were sent to military units," he said.

The officer recalled that most of his fellow soldiers did not want to fight.

"We were going to lay down weapons as soon as the Russian forces came and to go down into the cellar. I personally wasn't going to fight this war. And those who were on duty together with me were not going to fight, either. Nobody wanted to shoot," he said.

Subsequently, Stanislav deserted and stayed in hiding in Artyomovsk for almost a year, waiting for Russian forces to take over.