deep in the forest, towards the border with belarus, ukrainian forces were securing the territory the russians have left. large areas are hard to reach as bridges are down and roads blocked by mines. on the the edge of the exclusion zone around chernobyl is a village. really swampy ground. everyone wanted to talk about the russians. bogdan showed a place where russian soldiers made him dig a shallow grave to bury a man they d killed. and they had to sleep under these rags? he said that with four other young men, he was held as a prisoner for 15 days in the open, often bound and blindfolded, threatened with fake executions, then one shot him in the leg. translation: he put me on the bench, aimed his machine gun
and i have strongest belief that our treatment will be successful. in another room we met bogdan at two he survived a heart attack, stroke and stomach cancer. now 8. the cancer came back. his mother is with him around the clock. translator: we have only gone through one course of chemotherapy. now we are doing more blood tests. so far the results are not good. they are preparing for the second course of the therapy. you know, it s very difficult now. and when the sirens go off the doctors come and disconnect him from treatment. what is it like to be a mother trying to protect a child during this war? translator: it is so difficult. i cannot just put it into words. do you understand? it is impossible to put it into words. because every mother wants their baby to be healthy.
two weeks ago, danilo was in his final year of a law degree. now he s making homemade bombs, with ukraine s civil defence force. working side by side with an electrician, a welder and an olympic athlete. when did you learn how to make molotov cocktails? danilo has asked. it seems it s an optional course for the fourth year of the degree, he quips. bogdan was in kyiv looking for work as a lawyer when the war began. my family said i had to come back home because they needed my help. ukrainians across the country have met the russian aggressors with these weapons. the team here have been making two crates a day. we ve got a lot better at it, bogdan says. it s like making soup. you need to do everything step by step. 0dessa has been watching russian ships off its coast for days. its beaches mined, its opera house barricaded, its women and children,
bogdan was in kyiv looking for work as a lawyer when the war began. translation: my family said i had to come back home - because they needed my help. ukrainians across the country have met the russian aggressors with these weapons. the team here have been making two crates a day. we have got a lot better at it, bogdan says. translation: it is like making soup. you need to do everything step by step. odesa has been watching russian ships off its coast for days, its beaches mined, its opera house barricaded, its women and children heading out. 30 miles away, the queue at moldova s palanca crossing renews itself, day and night. this is the first safe port for people living in odesa. ukraine s third largest city has been braced for a russian assault for many days now, and having seen what has happened elsewhere, they know what to expect when it comes. angela has just arrived from odesa with one of her daughters and two grandchildren.
i am grateful that we can go and continue the treatment and help my child who really needs it right now. but on the other side, i am so worried, as i m leaving my two other kids behind. reporter: that is an impossible decision to have to make. translator: yes, but we have made it so far in the treatment and i have strong belief that our treatment will be successful. reporter: in another room, we met bogdan. is this your truck? at 2, he survived a heart attack, a stroke, and stomach cancer. now 8, the cancer s come back. his mother, natalia, is with him around the clock. translator: we have only gone through one course of ch chemotherapy. now we are doing more blood tests. so far, the results are not good. we re preparing for the second course of the therapy. you know, it is very difficult now and when the sirens go off, the doctors come and disconnect him from the treatment. reporter: what is it like to