London ( CNN ) Captive Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko has sent a stark message to Russian President Vladimir Putin as she awaits trial in a Moscow jail . In a letter from prison , written in response to questions from CNN , she said : `` If Putin wants to defeat Ukraine -- let 's try to defeat me first ! '' `` But if he wants peace and friendship between our nations as he claims , '' she added , `` I am ready to make the first step towards it . `` My freedom will be that first step towards peace and understanding in Ukraine . '' Savchenko has been held by the Russian authorities in pre-trial detention since last June . Her defiant message was written after CNN submitted a series of questions to the Ukrainian fighter pilot through one of her lawyers , Mark Feygin . We do not know under what circumstances Savchenko answered the questions , but Feygin says she wrote the responses on Friday as he was visiting her . Savchenko undertook a hunger strike for 83 days to protest her detention despite pleas from her family and her lawyers . She recently abandoned her fast after nearing death but has since resumed it , only drinking broth and milk occasionally to stay alive . Russia claims the 33-year-old is behind the killings of two Russian journalists hit by mortar fire at a checkpoint in eastern Ukraine , allegations she has always denied . Moscow says she then crossed voluntarily into Russia and sought asylum as a refugee . The Ukrainian government , however , insists she was kidnapped by rebel forces and that she is a prisoner of war . `` I have already been in captivity for an hour when those Russian journalists died . I have not seen them , and our ways have never crossed.. The 'rebels ' themselves told me that those journalists came under fire of their own 'makhnovtsi ' [ slang for 'anarchists ' ] , '' Savchenko told CNN in her letter from jail . `` And the investigators knew all about it since the very beginning ! And they have nothing on me ! They simply thought that it would be easy to `` twist my arms '' and receive another star for their epaulettes . But it 's not going to happen ! '' she added . Savchenko 's case has attracted wide international attention and turned her into a symbol of resistance against Russia in her home country , with Ukraine 's President Petro Poroshenko awarding her the title `` Hero of Ukraine , '' one of the nation 's highest honors . She has also been voted into the Ukrainian parliament despite her captivity . Despite her critical situation , Savchenko appears to have retained her sense of humor just as much as her determination , writing that she was feeling `` On the edge ! ... ; ) Close to Nirvana and enlightenment ! ; ) Joking . '' `` Holding on ! But holding my body entirely on my the power of my will , '' she continued , `` because I am so numb that I could n't feel the needle when the blood sample was taken from my vein today . `` Tottering , head is spinning , [ blood ] pressure 80x40 , [ blood ] sugar 2.9 , T [ temperature ] -- 35.7°C . But still be standing till 50kg [ body weight ] ! Even longer if God let 's me ! Has n't fainted even once and has n't fallen off my feet . '' The military pilot told CNN she is being monitored `` 24 hours a day , '' which she finds `` very annoying . '' `` Protection and security measures are such that King Kong would not have been able to break away ! ; ) , '' she joked again . `` But in general all is very decent and polite ! Treatment is reasonable . '' Savchenko 's lawyer recently told CNN 's Christiane Amanpour in an interview that President Putin holds Savchenko 's fate and that she wanted to await trial out of jail . Several international dignitaries have urged Moscow to release her , including EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini and the U.S. State Department , to no avail . But as Savchenko continues her hunger strike , is she willing to ultimately die in detention ? `` To die ? ! That 's not our methods ! ! ! ; ) I 'll think of something better ! ... : ; ) , '' she said . `` I 'll be on hunger strike as I said until I am returned back to Ukraine , or at least [ until ] detention is changed to a house arrest at the Ukrainian Consulate in RF , which is actually a part of Ukraine in Russia . `` There is no point starting eating in prison . The bite does n't go down the throat here in this cage ! And the truth must win after all ! ! ! '' CNN reached out to Russian authorities for an update on Savchenko 's case , who referred us to their last statement on Savchenko , dated from 20 February , where they call on the media to `` Let the investigators to finish their job . Let the court of justice to determine Savchenko 's degree of guilt of and punishment for the crimes she is charged with . '' Savchenko is currently scheduled to appear in court on May 13 .
Captive Ukrainian pilot sends message to Putin as she awaits trial in a Moscow jail . Nadiya Savchenko went on hunger strike for 83 days . Fighter pilot has been in pre-trial detention since last June .