Friday, July 17, 2015

Modern-Day Trench Warfare In Ukraine



CNN: On the front lines of Ukraine's forgotten war

Pisky, Ukraine (CNN)The war in Ukraine is not over.

It's easy to think that it might be. If you walk around the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, or Lviv in western Ukraine, or even in Mariupol, just a 20-minute car ride from the front lines in Shyrokyne, it's hard to feel the war. Life is still going on as normal. People are still going out to bars and restaurants, movies are still playing, young couples are still getting married and students are still in class.

Yet the war is not over.

This summer the Ukrainian military decided to allow, for the first time, embedded journalists within the regular army -- a unique opportunity to have a raw look at the conflict with Russian-backed separatists that began as tension over a trade deal and became the annexation of Crimea and fighting in the eastern lands that border Russia. I headed east to a checkpoint outside the industrial city of Donetsk, now a separatist stronghold, to meet up with the 93rd Brigade.

WNU Editor: But the real danger for Ukrainian soldiers is actually behind the lines and away from the trenches. IED attacks and sniper fire are now occurring on a regular basis and are taking a heavy toll.

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