In the Ukrainian village of Zolote, Olga Berezhna cradles one of the rabbits she raises, feeds her chickens and gets an eager greeting from her shaggy dog when she walks into the yard of her house. But this is not placid rural life — it’s a grinding wait to find see if there will be war.
At 59, Berezhna is the youngest of the 16 people left in the village. The others are mostly in their 80s; all the younger people long ago fled the village that’s near territory occupied by Russia-backed rebels.
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In the Ukrainian village of Zolote, Olga Berezhna cradles one of the rabbits she raises, feeds her chickens and gets an eager greeting from her shaggy dog when she walks into the yard of her house. But this is not placid rural life — it’s a grinding wait to find see if there will be war.
Ukrainian forces and separatist rebels began fighting in 2014, a war that has killed more than 14,000 people. Although the fighting has diminished significantly in recent years, fears are strong that it could resume and become even bloodier since Russia began massing troops near Ukraine’s border.
In the meantime, Berezhna and the soldiers wait.
Schoolchildren look at explosives during a police-organized civilian safety lesson in a city school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022. The city authorities have launches training for civilians amid fears about Russian invasion. (AP PhotoEfrem Lukatsky)
A Ukrainian serviceman looks back from atop an armored personnel carrier driving near a front line position in the Luhansk area, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe, the urgent efforts coming as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
A Ukrainian serviceman lies in bed looking at a mobile phone at a front line position in the Luhansk area, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe, the urgent efforts coming as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
Those who remain in the area look aged far beyond their years — soldiers on duty in snowy trenches and sandbag-lined positions.
A Ukrainian serviceman looks at a photographer while resting in a shelter on the front line in the Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe. The urgent efforts come as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
Ukrainian forces and separatist rebels began fighting in 2014, a war that has killed more than 14,000 people. Although the fighting has diminished significantly in recent years, fears are strong that it could resume and become even bloodier since Russia began massing troops near Ukraine’s border.
Russia says it has no intent of invading, but many in the West believe that an offensive is imminent.
The next clue about what happens next is likely to come when Russian President Vladimir Putin decides how to respond to the rejection by the United States and NATO of Moscow’s demand that Ukraine be permanently denied membership in the military alliance.
Ukrainian servicemen rest in a shelter on the front line in the Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe. The urgent efforts come as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
In the meantime, Berezhna and the soldiers wait.
An Ukrainian serviceman cleans his position in a trench on the front line in the Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe. The urgent efforts come as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
Schoolchildren look at explosives during a police-organized civilian safety lesson in a city school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022. The city authorities have launches training for civilians amid fears about Russian invasion. (AP PhotoEfrem Lukatsky)
A Ukrainian serviceman looks back from atop an armored personnel carrier driving near a front line position in the Luhansk area, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe, the urgent efforts coming as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)
A Ukrainian serviceman lies in bed looking at a mobile phone at a front line position in the Luhansk area, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. High-stakes diplomacy continued on Friday in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe, the urgent efforts coming as 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine's border and the Biden administration worries that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. (AP PhotoVadim Ghirda)