Ukrainian millionaire says he asked the military to bomb his mansion when he saw Russian troops occupying it

• A Ukrainian millionaire asked the military to bomb his home after it was occupied by Russian troops.
• Andrey Stavnitser said he saw Russian forces move onto his property via a security camera.

A Ukrainian millionaire says he asked his country's military to bomb his mansion after he saw it had been seized and occupied by Russian troops.

Andrey Stavnitser, the CEO of the Ukrainian IT company, TransInvestService, told ITV's "Good Morning Britain" that he saw Russian forces, including a tornado rocket launcher, move onto his property near Irpin on March 5 via a security camera. Irpin is a town outside the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

"They destroyed most of the cameras inside the house, but there was one small amateur webcam," he said.

Stavnitser, who left Ukraine for Poland after Russia invaded, said his security staff were captured, undressed, interrogated, and sent into the woods.

"There were 12 military vehicles on my territory, including rocket launchers, grenades, and tornado," Stavnitser said. "They were basically starting to shoot at Kyiv from my house."

Stavnitser told "GMB" he felt "disgusted" seeing the troops in his home, and called Ukraine's armed forces to give them the blessing to raze his home.

"Thankfully they were destroyed by Ukrainian military," he said.

Ukraine's defense ministry did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. Stavnitser posted images of what he said was the destroyed Russian artillery to his Facebook page earlier this month.

Speaking to "GMB," Stavnitser said he didn't care about the house, despite it being brand new and investing a lot of time into it.

"It was kind of an obvious decision for me. There is not a lot you can do to help the military and that was one of the opportunities that I had," he told "GMB."

"I want to do everything to help Ukraine win."

Russian forces have in recent weeks relocated its forces from Kyiv and repositioned them in the Donbas region. Russia initially expected to seize Kyiv within days, but have failed to do so in the face of staunch Ukrainian resistance.

In a video address Monday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia had begun its assault on the Donbas, which was largely controlled by pro-Kremlin separatist factions before Russia invaded Ukraine.

"We can now say that Russian troops have begun the battle for Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time. A very large part of the entire Russian army is now focused on this offensive," Zelenskyy said.

"No matter how many Russian soldiers are driven there, we will fight. We will defend ourselves. We will do this every day. We will not give away anything Ukrainian."

Stavnitser told "GMB" that Zelenskyy, whom he said he knows personally, is an inspirational leader who is setting the tone for all of Ukraine.

"I am really really proud to have a president like that," he said.