Here & Now Anytime Life in Ukraine, after 4 years of war
Feb 24, 2026
Dmitry Veselov, a former business analyst turned Ukrainian drone operator, describes frontline drone tactics. Toma Istomina, deputy chief editor at The Kyiv Independent, discusses public mood, negotiations, and how Ukraine has held the line. Joanna Kakissis, an NPR correspondent, shares firsthand reporting on civilian hardship, winter attacks on infrastructure, and human stories from Kyiv and the front.
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Ukraine Sees War As Defense For Europe
- Ukrainians view their fight as both existential for national survival and as defense of liberal democracy for Europe.
- Frontline soldiers and President Zelensky frame Ukraine as a defense line whose fall could embolden further authoritarian expansion.
Russia Weaponized Winter By Hitting Power Grid
- Joanna Kakissis described winter weaponization: Russia repeatedly targeted Ukraine's energy grid causing heating and electricity cuts that forced people to wear coats to bed.
- She mentions friends with iced-up windows still without power, underscoring civilian hardship this winter.
Willpower And Innovation Keep Ukraine Holding
- Toma Istomina says Ukraine's primary strength is its collective will not to surrender, a daily decision underpinning defense.
- Western military aid plus Ukraine's inventive defense sector (3 million FPV drones/year) bolsters that will.