Ten years ago, they led the Dignity Revolution in the frozen air of kyiv, to end Russian rule over Ukraine. Near Sloviansk, in southeastern Ukraine, his battalion is now dislodging the Russians from simple hedges on the edge of meadows.
“This is where we are. We fight for trees. Sometimes the invader takes revenge. The barely won groves are destroyed and bombarded,” says Illia, a 33-year-old soldier.