The Fighters Who Took Over a Retail Store to Defend Kyiv

As Russia signals that it’s ready to scale back military operations in the capital, soldiers from the 112th Brigade of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces in Kyiv are still training, fortifying their positions and getting ready to repel the Russian ground forces — if they ever come here.

“I don’t take their statements seriously. That is why our soldiers are at their positions, continuing with their military assignments,” said Andriy Kovaliov, the brigade’s press officer. “Our planning has not changed; we are still defending Ukraine.”

The soldiers have moved into a closed retail warehouse, one of the civilian locations in Kyiv now converted into military defense posts. Here, the newly enlisted learn to fight on the job.

“We have a task to be done,” said Andriy Tkachuk, who moved his family to western Ukraine and joined the unit when the war began. “When it’s done, we’ll sleep in our own beds.” Read more