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       The war in Ukraine started several years before Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

       And on March 21 it will be a decade since Crimea was incorporated into the Russian Federation, completing Vladimir Putin’s illegal annexation of the peninsula.

       This dark day marked the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War.

       To mark ten years of conflict in Ukraine, The Independent is hosting a Virtual Event that will explore the grim underbelly of the war - getting a first-hand perspective from a former British Army soldier captured by Russian forces.

       Shaun Pinner will be joining journalist Tim White, to detail how he was detained in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic after the siege of Mariupol and later freed in a prisoner swap.

       He will be sharing the true story of his six months spent imprisoned in Russian-occupied Ukraine in this exclusive event.

       After the horrors of frontline fighting, Shaun had to survive his capture by the Russian soldiers, and his removal to a Black Site - an off-the-grid prison untethered to human rights conventions - where he was subjected to a campaign of torture by Putin’s secret police that saw him shocked with electricity, stabbed, beaten, and almost starved to death, all while trying to maintain his morale with the other POWs.

       Born in Watford, Shaun Pinner served for nine years with the British Army’s Royal Anglian Regiment, latterly as part of 24 Airmobile Brigade on operations for the UN in Bosnia.

       He joined the Ukrainian military in 2018 as the country rebuilt its armed forces following the annexation of Crimea.

       The event will be hosted on Zoom and will last one hour. It will take place on Thursday 21 March and will start at 1pm GMT.

       Once signed up you will be able to ask questions. You can also post questions in the comments of this article.

       For more information and to sign up for a free ticket click here.

       More about British Army Ukraine annexation Vladimir Putin Crimea Russia Virtual Event

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       1/ 1Escaping Russian capture: Sign up to our exclusive event

       Escaping Russian capture: Sign up to our exclusive event

       Escaping Russian capture

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