US and Ukrainian officials say Russia has re-concentrated as many as 115,000 troops who could invade their country in the winter of 2022.
“I don’t want war, I don’t want to fight. I’m a civilian, but I want to be ready in case of need, ”Marta Yuzkiv, one of the many volunteers who have joined the territorial defense units that are preparing to defend Ukraine against a possible Russian invasion, told EFE.
“I am married, I have three children, ten cats, two dogs, chickens and a garden,” this 51-year-old medical graduate introduces herself, during a short break from military training taking place on the outskirts of Kiev.
Although she works for an international company specialized in clinical research, Marta attends these practices every Saturday with her husband and eldest son to prepare for war.
“In the history of Ukraine we have many examples where women fought alongside men,” she adds.
Marta enlisted with the 130th Kiev Territorial Defense Battalion in April, alarmed by reports of a Russian military concentration on Ukraine’s borders.
Now, according to US and Ukrainian officials, Russia has re-concentrated up to 115,000 troops who could invade their country in the winter of 2022.
This news has prompted many Ukrainians to enroll in territorial defense units.
More civilians prepare in the battalions
According to Captain Yuriy Kostenko, the battalion’s chief of staff, in recent weeks the number of people willing to join the territorial defense has increased.
“I get a lot of calls every day. There is a boom in requests to join the territorial defense by businessmen, lawyers, public employees, “he explains to Efe.
According to the military man, “people want to know what to do if a war starts. We give them the opportunity to prepare and acquire the necessary skills ”.
During the last month his battalion was joined by 20 volunteers and several dozen are in the admission process, open to men and women under 60 years of age.
There are six territorial defense battalions in Kiev, but four more will be created as of next January.
In total, 80,000 volunteers across the country would support the regular army in urban and suburban settings in the event of war.
“Our task is to patrol, create checkpoints and protect various targets such as public administration offices, roads, bridges, airports and train stations,” says Kostenko.
Battalion instructor Sergiy, alias “Thunder”, explains to Efe that these units are distinguished from regular forces since they do not fight on the front line.
“We stay in the cities and towns where we live to protect them, because we know them well,” he says.
According to a poll published this Friday by the Kiev International Sociology Institute, 50.2% of Ukrainians are ready to resist a Russian military intervention in their city, town or village.
33.3% of those surveyed stated that they were willing to fight with weapons in hand.
From occupied Donetsk to the defense of Kiev
In the exercises the volunteers practice how to carry out patrols and how to react to an enemy ambush.
“We also learn tactical medicine, cooperation between people in different situations: in the forest, in the city,” Danylo, a 21-year-old mathematician, who carries a pneumatic rifle, explains to Efe.
According to the young man, he has lived a third of his life in a country in a state of war.
“I have to be prepared to defend my family, my country, my home,” he says, admitting that he is scared to imagine that his hometown Kiev is taken over by “people with Russian weapons and flags.”
Dmytro Ternovskyi, for his part, knows firsthand the sorrows of a life under Russian occupation.
A native of Donetsk, he fled the city in 2016, two years after it was taken over by Kremlin-backed pro-Russian separatist militias.
“My father served in the Soviet army and my mother was a teacher of Russian language and literature, but I was raised as a patriot of Ukraine. After the occupation I suffered a lot and finally decided to leave ”, he affirms, expressing his decision to confront the invaders with arms.
‘Let Russia think twice’, warn Ukrainians
“It seems illogical to me to start a great war in Europe, it would be a great disaster. But who knows what can happen to (the president of Russia, Vladimir) Putin ”, comments Marta Yuzkiv, who although she is not sure of a Russian attack, prefers to be cautious than to have to regret.
“Honestly, I would rather work in my garden than carry a gun. But if the war starts, I will be prepared ”, she assures.
And it is that, according to Captain Kostenko, “the Russians will advance as far as we allow it.”
“Our goal is to create such resistance in every city, in every region, that it forces them to think twice before attacking. Russia may have enough forces to occupy the territory of Ukraine, but it will not be able to maintain the occupation, “he concluded. (I)
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