The fields are flat and generally featureless, and residents of the local villages have evacuated their homes. However, this area is of critical importance because it serves as a gateway to the city of Kherson. A metropolitan center of about 300,000 inhabitants, it is the only regional capital that the Russians managed to capture – making it an invaluable military prize. By capturing the city, the Ukrainians will effectively drive the enemy from the western side of the Dnipro River, strengthening the momentum they have built up in recent weeks. Their forces are about 30km from the outskirts of the city and we were driven into a series of narrow walled trenches that form the Ukrainian side of the current front line. A soldier called Oleksandr, who led us through a passage and then pointed to a hole that had been carved into the wall. “Sleep,” he said opening a small wooden door. “There we go, we sleep and cover up.” Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 3:33 Is Russia running out of weapons? The cover is something Oleksandr needs. This position is constantly being hit by the Russians. It is very active, every day, tanks and mortars, small and large caliber, shells, cluster bombs, Grad rockets – whatever they have, they use. Nearby, we found soldiers Vadim and Anatoly looking at the horizon from their post. It was cramped and claustrophobic, but they said the Ukrainians would soon gain more ground. “We won’t be here for long, just a few days,” Anatoly said. “But winter is coming, won’t that make it harder?” I asked. “We can handle it, we’ll be fine.” Read more: What makes Ukraine’s war different from previous wars and how we’ve reported it Record amount of grain leaves Ukraine despite Russian blockade There is a machine gun post protecting Ukrainian positions in the area and the commander told us he was willing to take us if we were ready to run. We walked across a section of open ground and found a pair of gunners at the edge of a shallow trench. We were told that this spot had recently been captured by the Russians. “Browning gun, Germany. I can show you,” said one, as he gripped the grips of his heavy machine gun. “If you look ahead, 11 o’clock, there’s a building there, and our intelligence now tells us that there are Chechens inside.” Chechen fighters, led by Ramzan Kadyrov, a prominent Russian supporter of Vladimir Putin, are actively involved in this war, developing a terrifying reputation for brutality. “Have you used (the gun)?” I asked. “Yes, we’ve used it and successfully – it’s indefensible. I can only imagine how the enemy felt afterwards.” Click to subscribe to Ukraine War Diaries wherever you get your podcasts The light was fading and the commander told us we had to go back. He had good reason to ask us to leave – the field in front of us was filled with artillery fire as we came out. We knew that the men in this disorderly line of trenches would have a long and difficult night.
