4 years of war in Ukraine and the harshest winter yet

Good evening from Kyiv.

My intrepid producer, Will Budkins, and I are making a quick stop here before heading to the Middle East. 

We spent much of last year here reporting on the war and the ongoing negotiations with Russia. It’s hard to believe tomorrow will mark four years of fighting. 

As many of you know, this was the assignment that changed my life in February of 2022. Then 25-year-old Robert hopped on a plane to Europe the day the war broke out with little concept of the world, never mind war’s harsh realities. 

I remember getting on that plane and thinking to myself, “What happens if we get there and it’s already over?” Remember, the common analysis at the time was once Russia laid full siege to Kyiv, 72 hours or maybe a week was about as long as the Ukrainians could hold.

How wrong those pundits were. How short-sighted many of us were. 

But in defense, many here in Ukraine thought four years of war was inconceivable at the time. 

“We thought that [Russia] would pull out and they would come to their senses,” said Bohdan Plehutsa, a resident of Kyiv. “Back then, I didn’t think it would last this long.”

Since then, it’s been four years of bombings. Four years of nights spent in the subway stations to survive. Four years of countless lives lost on the frontlines and in everyday households. 

And yet, this time back here feels so different. Ivana Shevel, a Ukrainian woman who moved back here after graduating from the University of Chicago, told us as much. 

“I’m starting to see cracks in all my family members and my friends,” she told us. “We’re all just trying to get through a single day at a time if that.”

Bombings and sleepless nights aren’t new. But Russia’s targets are. In recent weeks, ballistic missiles and drones have rained down on the energy infrastructure across the country. Direct hits on power plants have put much of Ukraine in the dark, and more pointedly, the cold.

People were out in the streets today taking in the “heat wave” of 36 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s a far cry from the negative temperatures people were trying to sleep through just a few days ago. 

Without power, there is no heat, no hot water, no hot meals. And yet, life’s hurdles don’t cease. 

“The thing that I think a lot of foreigners don’t necessarily realize is that your life doesn’t stop when the war is going on,” Shevel said. “You still have to take kids to school. You still have to go to classes, to work, make food.”

The select fortunate have gas in their homes or a generator in their possession. The hotel I’m sitting in right now, which is a high-rise that boasts a few hundred rooms, has been running on generator-only power for weeks. Just about the entire city can say the same. 

Again, if they’re lucky. 

For those without, their best bets are the warming stations set up around the city where the tired, hungry, sick, cold, and elderly flock just to get through the day. 

“We fill bottles, put them under the covers at night, and warm ourselves,” explained Rayisa Herasymenko. “Because at ten degrees, you won’t get warm.”

“And the cat beside us!” chimed in her friend, Tamila Ivanenko, with a cheeky grin. “It warms us.”

Herasymenko and Ivanenko are two elderly Kyiv residents who have found camaraderie at the warming station. When the nights run long, bombs fall, and temperatures dip, hot tea and warm conversation become the little things that get you through.

“We’re staying positive,” said Ivanenko. “There’s a war, but we remain positive. At our age, only positivity matters.”

Much of the conversation surrounding Ukraine presently entails words like “negotiations” and “concessions” and “territory.” What’s missed by many is that the war focused in the east has become total warfare for the civilian population in a way it hasn’t been before. 

I asked the two women earnestly if they believed they could keep going. 

“We believe the war will end,” said Herasymenko. “In victory.”

Ivanenko nodded in agreement: “We believe in victory. The war will end.”

Make no mistake about it. Everyone here wants the war to end. Everyone hopes the U.S. efforts to bring about peace will prevail. 

But only if it’s sustainable, doesn’t reward Russia for its military action and doesn’t set the table to be right back here again in a few years. 

“At least another year for sure,” opined Plehutsa.

Peace may seem distant, but March is next week. 

Which means the hardest winter yet is almost in the past. 

UPDATE ON ‘LESSONS FROM THE FRONT‘

For those who attended my event in London last week, thank you from the bottom of my heart. It was so humbling to see familiar faces, meet new ones, and take my book “Lessons from the Front” international. 

It was also a pleasure having a conversation with students at Ohio University last week as they chart their path forward in the world of journalism. The future is bright with such sharp, inquisitive minds waiting for their chance to get started!

We’ll have a lot more events to note soon. For those who live overseas, the book has formally published in the U.K. and Australia, making international shipping much easier. For those who prefer audiobooks, that is out now as well.