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Russian drone attacks are reshaping life in Ukraine
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has settled into a grinding, no-end-in-sight war of attrition. Tens of thousands of drones now swarm the skies, threatening the lives of millions of Ukrainians near the frontline as well as western cities like Kyiv. On the latest episode of GZERO World, Ian Bremmer sits down with Christopher Miller, chief Ukraine correspondent for the Financial Times, for a firsthand look at how Russia’s war has transformed life into “hell” for Ukrainian civilians who live in constant fear of drone attacks, long range missiles, and aerial bombs.
Russian drones are now capable of flying nearly 40 or 50 kilometers, putting entire cities near the border within striking distance. Urban warfare in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region has become slow, bloody and devastating for the Ukrainians who still live there. Even far from the trenches, in Kyiv and Lviv, citizens endure nightly aerial raid sirens and attacks, hiding in bomb shelters and metro stations to avoid injury from shrapnel and debris. Miller says that drone warfare means nowhere in Ukraine is safe. From the frontlines to the border of the EU, it’s a war zone.
“I go to bed every night anticipating there to be another air attack,” Miller says, “We don't sleep much and we get up in the morning and we look outside and we see the destruction. That might mean 20 people killed on one day. It can mean 40 people injured the next.”
GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, airs nationwide on US public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don't miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔). GZERO World with Ian Bremmer airs on US public television weekly - check local listings.
Former (and incoming) President Donald Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meet at Trump Tower in New York City, on Sept. 27, 2024.
Trump wants more Ukrainians drafted
President-elect Donald Trump promised on the campaign trail to end the war in Ukraine “on Day One” of his administration. His supporters have long argued Trump should be taken seriously but not literally, and his team has since rolled back that expectation and insists on a 100-day ceasefire timeline instead.
That goal is still plenty ambitious, and the incoming president is already laying the groundwork for a halt to fighting. Trump will likely speak directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the coming days, and he’s already beginning to detail what he’ll ask of Ukraine.
In April 2024, Ukraine, under Biden administration pressure, lowered its conscription age from 27 to 25 to bring more soldiers to the frontlines. Incoming National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told ABC News on Sunday, that Trump wants the age lowered to 18. “If Ukrainians have asked the whole world to be all in for democracy, we need them to be all in for democracy,” said Waltz.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has resisted pressure from Washington by insisting that if his country is to remain economically viable, it can’t sacrifice so many of its young men. He also warns there aren’t enough weapons for the Ukrainian troops already in the field.
Which comes first: the soldiers or the weapons? This debate will continue once Trump is inaugurated next Monday, but Zelensky knows that the new US president will have the leverage to get most of what he wants.
Ukraine's killer dune buggies
Before Russia invaded Ukraine, metalworker Volodymyr Sadyk specialized in making gates at his shop in western Ukraine, near the Romanian border. But in his spare time, he and his friends also built and raced dune buggies.
When the war began, Volodymyr had an idea — he offered some of the buggies to the Ukrainian army, which was looking for ways to even the playing field against a much larger enemy. The response from Kyiv was immediate: send us more.
Today, Volodymyr and his crew of 7 men have made close to 60 custom buggies for the Ukrainian army. Light, rugged, and agile, the Mad Max-style vehicles are perfect for sniffing out Russian positions, swarming Russian columns with anti-tank fire, or evacuating wounded soldiers.
In December, GZERO World had a chance to visit his workshop to check out the buggies and learn more about Volodymyr’s work.