Tom, which is stronger in Mykolaiv: the feeling of victory because of Kherson or the fear of new missile attacks?
‘The images in Kherson show great euphoria, but I don’t feel it here. The chance of a Russian capture of Mykolaiv has of course decreased due to the relocation of the front line, but had actually disappeared for a while. Meanwhile, there was a heavy air raid here yesterday with an S-300 missile. That is a missile that is actually intended to shoot aircraft out of the sky, but due to a lack of precision missiles, Russia now uses it to attack ground targets. Yesterday, such a rocket hit a residential complex, resulting in seven deaths.
‘I went to look at that apartment building. People stood in their pajamas to watch their neighbors’ bodies being recovered. A boy of 16 had lost his parents, an older man his child. Mykolaiv has been bombed almost daily since February. The atmosphere is very depressed here, I have not seen euphoria.
“The people I spoke to at the impact site said they are sure Ukraine is going to win. And that the liberation of Kherson is a step towards victory.’
What is that trust based on?
“The war has been going well for Ukraine in recent months. They drove the Russians first from the north near Kyiv, then from the northeast around Kharkiv, and now Kherson has been recaptured. The Russians are unable to gain territory in the East and Ukraine has stable arms support from the West. The soldiers are also much more motivated than the Russians. Zelensky has no problem, like Putin, in explaining what his soldiers are fighting for. The Ukrainians are fighting for their country. At the same time, the reality is that Ukraine still has a long way to go.”
Are the Ukrainians willing to fight for the liberation of their country for years to come? And therefore continue to undergo these kinds of rocket attacks?
“I don’t notice any doubt among Ukrainians. No one I’ve spoken to is willing to negotiate. Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have already died in this war. Negotiating a compromise with Putin now would mean that those people died for nothing. And that Russia will not be punished for invading Ukraine, and the crimes it committed here.”
“People are afraid that the West will put pressure on Kyiv to negotiate at some point. But now Ukraine is in better shape than Russia. It also has the ability to fight on.”
A little more about Mykolaiv: how do people deal with that fear that your home could be bombed every day?
‘Part of the population has fled, but many others do not want that. It is not easy to leave your home and become a refugee. For many people that feels like a humiliation.’
‘The people who are left behind try to live as normal as possible. For example, shops and cafes are open. But they are afraid. The air raid siren still goes off twice a night and it is so loud that it always wakes you up. And then we just hope there isn’t a bang. Since the start of the invasion, there have been only 44 days when Mykolaiv has not been bombed.
‘They hope that clean water will come out of the tap again soon. Normally the drinking water here comes from the Dnipro, but Russia has blown up pipes between the river and the city. Ukraine could not repair it, because those pipes were in a war zone. With the liberation of Kherson, they hope that they can now be repaired. At the moment, so-called ‘technical water’ comes out of the tap. It’s very chemical: you can shower with it, but you can’t drink or cook with it.’
How is it for you as a journalist there? By going to a city that is shelled almost every day by the Russian army, you are also endangering yourself.
‘You hardly get to the really dangerous places on the front line. The Ukrainian army keeps journalists away. We made our way to Kherson, but were stopped 25 kilometers before the city. According to the army, the city is still too dangerous. Russian soldiers are said to have been left behind, possibly disguised as ordinary civilians. And with the gradual withdrawal, Russia has had the chance to leave the city perilous.
“The Ukrainian army will investigate this carefully and filter the population for Russian soldiers and collaborators. How it does it may not want to show us either.
‘It is also a risk to work in a city like Mykolaiv. But it’s the only way to show what’s happening in this war. I can leave after a few days. Other people don’t have that luxury. The risks for journalists are there, but they do not outweigh the risks for the population.’