In July, I had the opportunity to visit a special forces unit near Sumy in the north-east. The soldiers had just returned from a mission across the Russian border, and despite being wet, dirty, and tired, they seemed satisfied with their work. They spent their time reviewing footage from GoPros and drones, reading books, watching movies, eating and resting on couches. I spent four days with them, observing their training exercises and even joining in on their volleyball games by the nearby lake.
During one of our games, we heard a powerful noise in the distance. The soldiers quickly glanced up at the sound before refocusing on the game. One of my teammates casually mentioned that it was Himars – a rocket launcher used to strike Russian targets. It was an eerie moment considering that just a few days later I learned that two of the soldiers I had spent time with at the lake were killed during their next mission.
Moving on to another location called Kharkiv Control Centre in Kharkiv city – an unremarkable building with shuttered windows but serves as a base for Khartia Brigade - part of National Guard founded in 2022. Inside this building is where they manage drones used in battlefields through observation points equipped with large TV screens displaying multiple video streams simultaneously.
The article then takes us to another place called Kharkiv Drone Unit located about 5km from the front line where large drones are stationed for surveillance purposes during nighttime operations due to its proximity to enemy lines.
Lastly, we are introduced to Tsyrukny – a sappers’ point close to the front line where sappers work meticulously adapting ammunition for different types of drones using homemade explosive devices made from plastic bottles or printed on 3D printers along with parts of RPG-7 rocket launchers and other grenades scattered around them.
Overall this article provides insight into various units involved in Ukraine’s conflict against Russia-backed militants through personal experiences shared by Sergiy Maidukov who has been covering this conflict alongside servicemen.
