Trains no longer run to Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region - part of the Donbas claimed in its entirety by Russia's President Vladimir Putin. It's another sign of the steady Russian advance.
Instead, the last station is now on the western side of the Donetsk border, where civilians and soldiers wait for a ride towards relative safety—their train to get out of Dodge.
Putin has been sounding more bullish since the leak of US proposals to end the war, widely seen as being in tune with his maximalist demands. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says territory remains the most difficult issue facing US-led peace talks.
At the last station, soldier Andrii and his girlfriend Polina are parting after an all-too-brief time together. Andrii has to return to the front, and they don't know when they'll see each other again. He laughs when peace talks are mentioned, dismissing them as chatter, just chatter; he doesn't believe the war will end soon.
There’s also skepticism among soldiers boarding trains for brief respites from battle. Russian forces now control about 85% of the Donbas, having recently captured the strategic town of Pokrovsk. Denys, a Ukrainian soldier, states, Nobody will give Putin the Donbas. No way, it's our land. He expresses concern over the relentless fighting and emotional drain faced by his unit.
On the civilian front, there's a constant exodus from the Donbas. Families, like that of Yevheniy and Maryna, escape increasingly dangerous conditions marked by intensifying drone assaults. They plan to relocate to Kyiv but harbor little faith in the ongoing peace talks.
While most Ukrainians resist yielding territory, some, such as Oleksandr, contemplate concessions for peace. He reflects, Personally, I would agree to those terms. In times of desperation, others like Inna prioritize safety over sentiment, asking for any deal that promises peace.
As desertion rates rise among soldiers—nearly 300,000 over the past year—individual experiences of trauma and hopelessness echo throughout the ranks. Individuals like Serhii, who is evading arrest after deserting, reflect a grim assessment of Ukraine's military odds.
While peace talks continue, the reality of war weighs heavily on residents of the Donbas, resulting in mixed feelings about their future and the negotiations that might define it.
