„Ich sah dem Tod ins Gesicht!“ An Bord der Transsibirischen Eisenbahn eine 9.000 Kilometer lange Reise durch ein erschöpftes Russland

**In late December 2025 and early 2026, on the train linking Moscow to Vladivostok, soldiers returning from Ukraine cross paths with cautious travelers, careful about what they say. Beyond the Urals, propaganda posters attempt by every possible means to recruit new soldiers.**

A man staggered along a snow-covered platform at Yaroslavl Station in Moscow in late December 2025. Was it the alcohol, or the improbable load he was dragging – a backpack and crutches piled onto a wheelchair he was painfully pushing? He is a soldier, around 45 years old, thin, barely dressed for the winter cold, wearing a black cap adorned with a Russian flag. Dead drunk, without a doubt.

In the chaos of departure, no one paid him any attention. Around train stations, the sight of these haggard faces and hesitant figures dressed in mismatched military gear is commonplace. They wander, waiting for a train that will take them back to the front or home for a two-week leave.

In central Moscow, it is a different story. Soldiers blend into the anonymity of the hurried crowds, overshadowed by the extravagant New Year’s decorations – more ostentatious than ever, as if to firmly impress upon people’s minds that life goes on, that the war does not reach the empire’s crown jewel.

The drunk soldier staggered toward the train. „SVO,“ he whispered, the acronym for the „special military operation,“ in other words, the war in Ukraine. The *provodnitsa*, the „attendant,“ checked his papers and, with compassion, murmured, „Get on, Sasha, may you make it home!“ The *provodnitsa* is more than just a ticket inspector. On board each car, she is the all-powerful chief, responsible for enforcing discipline as well as keeping the samovar filled. Breaking every rule, she let the aforementioned Sasha (whose last name is unknown), visibly drunk, board the Moscow-Vladivostok train.

The legendary Trans-Siberian Railway is indistinguishable from other trains. It is a long metal serpent made up of gray carriages, some dating back to the Soviet era, with square windows. This railway, which links Moscow to the Pacific Ocean and stretches over 9,000 kilometers, amounting to a journey of six nights and seven days, is Russia’s main artery. Today, Russians only travel on it for short stretches, two or three days at most. For longer journeys, flying is more convenient and cost-effective.

**Read the full article here:** [**https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/04/11/i-stared-death-in-the-face-on-board-the-trans-siberian-a-9-000-kilometer-journey-through-an-exhausted-russia_6752318_4.html**](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/04/11/i-stared-death-in-the-face-on-board-the-trans-siberian-a-9-000-kilometer-journey-through-an-exhausted-russia_6752318_4.html)

[https://archive.ph/BUq83](https://archive.ph/BUq83)

“exhausted Russia”

Imagine how exhausted Ukraine must be.