Pokrovsk, Oleksandrivka, Kramatorsk - for months now, these towns have been the scene of fierce Russian attacks. It is here that it is decided whether Russian troops will advance into the interior of Ukraine.
Pokrovsk, Oleksandrivka, Kramatorsk - for months now, these towns in eastern Ukraine have been the scene of fierce Russian attacks. It is here that the decision is made whether Russian troops will advance further into the country and take control of the entire Donetsk region.
While the leaders of the Western world are negotiating thousands of kilometers away, locals are wondering whether these talks are achieving anything at all or are making the situation worse, writes the German public media ARD in a report from Donbas.
When combat drones circle overhead
Not far from the front line, Ukrainian soldiers are preparing for their mission on the battlefield at military training grounds. "I didn't want to fight, it's not my thing. But we were attacked - Putin attacked us and now we have to defend our country," 46-year-old Andriy tells ARD. Russian combat drones constantly circle overhead the heads of Ukrainian soldiers. "Everything has changed: we used to look at the ground when we moved, but now we have to look up all the time," says a soldier with the call sign Tsipa.
Technology is developing rapidly. The Russians are using guided bombs and reconnaissance drones that target training centers for Ukrainian soldiers.
Not far from the disputed town of Pokrovsk, Nikolay and his team work in a secret workshop, repairing damaged vehicles and fitting them with improvised protective covers. They are hidden in a wooded area. "Drones are constantly circling in the sky, sometimes one vehicle is attacked by three or four drones at once," he says. ARD points out that one of the cars they are repairing at the workshop is riddled with shrapnel.
The men are working almost around the clock: installing mufflers, stretching nets over vehicles, welding metal plates. "We must do everything possible to ensure that our soldiers survive this meat grinder", says Nikolai. By "meat grinder" he means the dangerous roads around Pokrovsk, where Russian drones, bomb planners and artillery attack almost non-stop.
Skepticism about peace talks
The soldiers hear that far away, Trump and Putin are meeting and talking, but they expect nothing from these talks. "Are you ready to give up half your house to live in peace?", Nikolai asks rhetorically. One thing is clear to him: after all the victims, there can be no compromise at the expense of Ukraine.
The driver Serhiy is of the same opinion. "This land is ours. If the criminals are not punished, then something is wrong in the world", he adds. He fears that in time his son will have to fight too.
The attacks are endless
Oleksandrivka is located not far from the front. Russian drones are constantly attacking here too - destroying, wounding, killing. Many families have left their homes, but some remain - out of stubbornness, out of hope, or simply because they don't have the financial means to leave.
Irina, who works in the city's sanitation department, says: "I only hope for peace, because I have a child and a job. You see - we are still working." The city's mayor, Lyudmila Borisevich, describes the situation soberly: "Our residents are constantly under attack from drones. For a month and a half, many buildings have been damaged. People hope that the front will stop moving towards them."
Kramatorsk: the incessant wail of sirens
A few kilometers further on, in Kramatorsk, the sirens are almost constantly wailing. Rockets are falling on the city regularly. At the market, a vendor named Marina says: "Putin will never negotiate. His goal is to destroy all of Ukraine. I have lost many friends."
Blogger Maxim Khodushko marvels at the meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska: "If Putin wanted peace, he would have done it quietly and peacefully here," he says. The Ukrainian is convinced that no concessions will help. "The war can only be ended if the Russians withdraw," he says. Irina, 64, hopes some kind of agreement can be reached. But she worries that other cities will suffer.
Between hope and reality
In Donbas, people yearn for peace, but they know Putin will not stop voluntarily. "There is nothing to agree on," says a market vendor. "Everything remains as it is."
There, some only attempt to flee when fighting is on their doorstep, while others are determined to stay - because they have elderly parents, because they cannot say goodbye to their home, or simply because they do not know where to go, the ARD report from Donbass also says.