2000 Meters to Andriivka
November 25, 2025
1h 51m
A stunning portrayal of war in the trenches from the Oscar®-winning team behind "20 Days in Mariupol."
2000 Meters to Andriivka
November 25, 2025
1h 51m
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A stunning portrayal of war in the trenches from the Oscar®-winning team behind 20 Days in Mariupol. A FRONTLINE and Associated Press collaboration, this documentary reveals combat bodycam-footage and powerful moments of reflection, following a Ukrainian platoon trying to liberate a village.
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This program contains graphic imagery of war which may not be suitable for all audiences. Viewer discretion is advised.
BROADCAST VERSION
[Soldiers are speaking Ukrainian except in those instances where Russian is noted.]
“There were many words that you could not stand to hear and finally only the names of places had dignity.”
‒ Ernest Hemingway, 1929
BORS:
[Speaking Russian] Are you filming?
PIRO:
[Speaking Russian] Yeah.
BORS:
[Speaking Russian] Film how beautiful I am.
PIRO:
[Speaking Russian] F—. That’s exactly what I turned it on for.
BORS:
[Speaking Russian] Yeah?
PIRO:
[Speaking Russian] Yeah.
BORS:
[Singing in Russian] “There are tears in your eyes. Do not go looking for me.”
“I’m suffering, crying.”
PIRO:
F—. F—— hell, f—.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
How long can we put up with this endless humiliation?
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Be quiet and put up with it, f—.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
One of their mortars was destroyed, but, but there was more than one firing at you. So be careful. Hang in there, hang in there, boys.
PIRO:
Suicide drone, boys. FPV. [Speaking Russian] There it goes, there it goes. [Speaking Ukrainian] F—!
Get in here, get in here.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
I’m in f—— shock, go see what’s happened to the guys.
PIRO:
I’ll go look.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Fara.
PIRO:
Fara. Fara.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Morty?
PIRO:
Fara. Fara.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Fara. Morty, Morty, friend. Morty? Morty! Come on, brother, get up! Live! He exhaled. Morty, brother!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Piro, Piro, what’s going on?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
He’s bleeding!
PIRO:
Fara and Morty have been killed.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
What happened to them?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
They’re gone.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
We need to leave.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Let’s go brother. Let’s go.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Five minutes. Five minutes. Get ready. We are coming for you.
Get ready, get ready. Evac is coming.
PIRO:
Boys, the APC. The APC.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, we need to load in the APC.
PIRO:
Come on, from the right side. Quickly.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, quickly, quickly.
PIRO:
Get inside, get inside, get inside.
MEDEVAC DRIVER:
Go, go, go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Hold on, the boys are coming.
MEDEVAC DRIVER:
Where are the boys?
PIRO:
They’re coming, they’re coming, they’re coming. F—!
MEDEVAC DRIVER:
How many of you are there?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, faster.
PIRO:
Come on, come on. [Speaking Russian] Move it, f—!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
There’s one more.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, boys.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
There’s one more.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
That’s everyone. That’s it. Let’s go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on.
MEDEVAC DRIVER:
Oh, f—. F—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Don’t hit it. It’s already in pain.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] We’re stuck, f—!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Gas it.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] F—, we’re stuck.
PIRO:
Step on the gas.
MEDEVAC DRIVER:
Come on, come on, come on. F—— hell!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s go by foot?
PIRO:
Yeah.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Go! Get out, get out. Toss everything aside, only take your weapons.
PIRO:
[Speaking Russian] Just take what’s yours and go. Toss it, toss it, brother. [Speaking Ukrainian] I’m taking my machine gun.
[Speaking Russian] Bors, get in the hole. F—. [Speaking Ukrainian] What happened to him, brother!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Arms and legs . . .
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
The car is f—— stuck.
BORS:
Apply the tourniquet f—— as best as you can. My right arm is also shattered.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
The right arm.
BORS:
And the left one, too.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
The left one isn’t bleeding. His elbow is broken. F—.
BORS:
And both legs are broken from behind.
PIRO:
This is Piro. Bors is seriously wounded. The APC is stuck. Something broke. And that’s the whole story.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Help me.
PIRO:
What?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Help me, please.
Please.
HECTOR:
Are you wounded, too?
PIRO:
Who else? Who else is wounded?
HECTOR:
Moroz and Baldy are wounded. Boys, we need to get a move on it. Did you bandage him?
PIRO:
He’s done. All four of his limbs are wounded.
HECTOR:
All his limbs are broken?
PIRO:
Yeah.
HECTOR:
Take off your gear. Take off your gear and we’ll carry you. Climb on my back.
Russians are finishing off our guys.
PIRO:
Bring your legs over here.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
What happened?
PIRO:
That’s it boys, it’s my leg, f—. That’s it for me, brother. That’s it for me.
HECTOR:
No, Piro. Bandage it and crawl!
PIRO:
Brother, I can’t crawl . . .
HECTOR:
Yes you can. Baldy crawled, Moroz crawled, and you’ll crawl!
PIRO:
It’s broken.
BORS:
Come on, drag me, f—— please.
HECTOR:
Get in the hole, Piro.
PIRO:
Oh, f—, it hurts. F—!
BORS:
Hector, come on.
PIRO:
Friend, don’t come back for me. I’ll manage.
HECTOR:
No. Thank you, but no. I’ll come back.
Stay calm. Don’t even think about blowing yourself up. Understood?
PIRO:
Understood. Go.
BORS:
Hector, come on.
HECTOR:
I’ll come back.
PIRO:
Don’t. F—!
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
Both Ukraine and Russia are reporting fierce fighting along the front lines.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Ukrainian forces have now launched their much-talked-about counteroffensive.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
—the new counteroffensive, expected to be the biggest military operation in Europe since World War II.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Russian forces are concentrated, they are deeply embedded. They’ve been building fortifications and defenses.
MALE NEWSREADER:
With virtually no independent reporting from the front lines, it’s impossible to assess the degree to which Ukraine’s operation is underway or whether it’s having success.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV, Correspondent:
I want to tell you a story. A story thousands of years old. A story of men fighting for their land. There is a forest in eastern Ukraine, a narrow strip of trees squeezed between two minefields. The only way to Andriivka, a village on the outskirts of Bakhmut. This is the story of this forest and the people who will remain there forever.
September 16, 2023
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
6:00 a.m. We are in the 3rd Assault Brigade headquarters. The Ukrainian counteroffensive is underway.
DUDA:
Friend, we don’t have anyone at 12 o’clock. If you see any movement, f— it.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Tell them, “Shoot at anything that approaches them.”
Where is our position?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Here on the eastern front, the brigade’s task had been to move through 2,000 meters, approximately one mile, of the heavily fortified forest and capture the strategic village of Andriivka. This would cut the Russian supply road to the occupied city of Bakhmut, and we want to be there when it happens. But it’s hard for journalists to get to the battlefield. Our only chance is to meet with Fedya, the officer on the ground.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Friend, I can’t. I have too many people here.
DUDA:
Copy, friend. Never mind. I will not distract you.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
He is busy.
Damn. Maybe we can convince him somehow. This is a very important moment.
Duda, the coordinating officer, has an idea.
DUDA:
You know what we can do? We’ll wait for the 93rd Brigade. They will have six men. So we can send them together.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
We manage to convince them to take us.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Are we going now?
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Yeah, yeah. That’s it.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Duda tells us we’re idiots for wanting to go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Remember, positions have moved. Ryaba and . . .
DUDA:
[Speaking Russian] This is the forest you’ll be moving through. “Zhyzhky.” It leads to Andriivka. You should know this. If s— happens and the bombing starts, don’t get lost.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Our commander there is Fedya, call sign Fedya.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] That’s his call sign?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Yes, yes, call sign. Fedya.
DUDA:
[Speaking Russian] This is a note for Fedya.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Duda sends a flag and a note to Fedya. If Andriivka is liberated, his task will be to raise the flag.
DUDA:
[Speaking Russian] This must get into Fedya’s hands. They’ll figure it out from there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Yeah, the forest. That damned forest.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Give it to me.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Oh, you don’t have any cigarettes left.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] I’m so nervous.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] I’ve seen them go three times. They’d make it halfway through the field and then f—— get mowed down by Russians and roll back.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] The forest is surrounded by fields. It leads directly to the village.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] And all the fields are f—— mined.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Armored vehicles cannot pass, so the infantry can only move by foot.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] June, July, August—one village in three months.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Wearing the blue journalist vest on the battlefield is no longer an option. It makes us priority targets.
ALEX BABENKO, Photographer:
Copy.
I’m Alex and this is Mstyslav.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Hi.
ZHENYA:
Zhenya, “Skif.”
SASHA:
Sasha.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
If we are lucky, today we’ll get to Fedya and film him raising the flag. But we’re all nervous. The forest leading to the village has killed many men.
Before departing I kept looking at the map. Two thousand meters. Three months. It didn’t make sense. Why did it take so long?
Then they showed us. Videos from helmet cameras, drones. Records of all the violent battles on the way to Andriivka. Each one, an attempt to get closer. Each one, taking its toll.
2000 Meters
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get back, get back, close it.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Wait, wait, wait!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Close the door.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
I’m injured!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Drive away!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Drive away. F—!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
We left Hun!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Open. I don’t see anything!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
All right, get out!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Door, door!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get out. Get out!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on. Come on!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, go over there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Where?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Go there. Crawl over there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Radio!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Move away from the APC! Over there. Away from the APC!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Pass me the gun. I can’t feel anything and can’t get up.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Move the f—away from the APC. F—— leave everything. Greg!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Greg is dead.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Dead? Come on! Let’s move over there away from the APC. Quickly! That way!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Help, my leg.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Copy.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Let’s go, let’s go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Get up!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
To where?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s f—— go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
He didn’t open the door.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get up. If you want to live, get up!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Mark!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Do you have room?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
What?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Do you have room?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
We’re full!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Full? Drive. F—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—, where did he drive off to?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Mark.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
He left. He left. Wait.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s move away from the APC. Need to move away from the APC.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Take him by the straps. Let’s go down there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Over here. We left Hun. F—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—, who is burning over there? Maybe we should go and get them out?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Back! F—, the ammunition is f—— about to explode!
SAVA:
Tourniquet!
MYSTIC:
On your arm brother?
SAVA:
Yes.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Cover.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Ammo is exploding. Let’s go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—, the signal here is so bad.
SAVA:
Do you have a radio? Mine fell out.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—. This tourniquet f—— sucks.
SAVA:
Where’s Mark?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
With Rot. Sava, brother, give me your arm. Give me your arm, brother.
Does anyone have a marker?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
An RPG, guys. Spread out over there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s hurry. Brother, are you coming?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Spread out.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Wait, Mark. Look for a dugout!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
We f—— forgot Hun. F—— Greg . . .
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Calm down.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] My dear, hold on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Mark, can you breathe?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Mark, Mark, Mark, don’t pass out!
SAVA:
I can’t feel my arm.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Brother, hold on. You’re going to bleed out. We can’t loosen the tourniquet. We can’t, brother. No we can’t. Please tolerate it a bit longer.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Is the team whole? Who are you missing? Hun is with us.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Hun is with them!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Hun is with you?
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Hun is with us. Hun is with us. One engineer is missing.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Who can walk?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s go to the forest. We’ll crawl under and at least we won’t be visible.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Some of these battles gained ground. Some pushed the brigade back. But they kept fighting. And now, we follow their steps.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get out, get out, get out.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Open it, open it.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
8:30 a.m. Our transport reaches the forest. One of the soldiers tells me, “It’s like landing on a planet where everything is trying to kill you.”
But it’s not another planet, I tell myself. It’s the middle of Europe.
Now we have to get to Fedya. But instead of him, we meet one of his soldiers with the callsign “Freak.”
ALEX BABENKO:
[Speaking Russian] Where’s Fedya?
FREAK:
Boys, are you on our positions?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
[Speaking Russian] Yes. Where’s Fedya?
FREAK:
Follow me.
ALEX BABENKO:
Where’s Fedya?
FREAK:
I’ll bring you to him.
Fedya, Fedya, it’s Freak, over.
When the radio is free, I’ll get in contact with Fedya.
Pencils have arrived.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
He calls us “pencils” so that the Russians intercepting radio chatter don’t know we arrived.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Which direction are the Russian motherf——?
FREAK:
The motherf——? Over there! We will be moving toward them now. Is everyone ready? Follow me.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let’s keep a distance.
FREAK:
Keep distance, but also move quickly.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
The battles moved forward, closer to the village, leaving the destroyed armored vehicles and bodies behind. The fields and the roads around were mined by the Russians. The forest is the only way.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Lava, Lava, tell Panda that there is the possibility of enemy aircraft.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
The village is 2,000 meters ahead. Thirty-five seconds for a mortar shell to fly. A two-minute drive. A 10-minute run. But here, time doesn’t matter—distance does. And it’s measured by pauses between the explosions.
DUDA [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Fedya, Fedya, it’s Duda.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Go for Fedya.
DUDA [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] There are five to seven motherf—— left. They’re messed up and they’re lost.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Copy, understood. They are constantly shooting with mortars. The directions are 50-60, 80-85 and 100-110 azimuth. Right now, they’re just changing targets.
DUDA [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Copy, Fedya, copy. We’ll find and f—— destroy them.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I hear over the radio that Fedya is in the middle of the fight. The battle in Andriivka is raging.
FREAK:
Freak for Fedya, Freak for Fedya, over.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Go for Fedya.
FREAK:
We are at the Iksy position. How do you copy?
FEDYA [on radio]:
Copy, well done guys. Wait for orders. You need to wait, for now.
FREAK:
Copy.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Freak, Freak, buddy, as soon as you transfer, take shelter immediately, please.
FREAK:
Copy, copy. I brought them to the dugouts.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Fedya, tell the boys to take cover. The motherf—– is going to use the grenade launcher.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Grenade launch! Take shelter! F—— shoot back at him!
FREAK:
We’ll need to move fast. The artillery fire doesn’t stop. So hold on for dear life, like never before.
ALEX BABENKO:
OK.
FREAK:
Boys!
ALEX BABENKO:
Yeah?
FREAK:
In the event they use gas, you can rinse with this.
ALEX BABENKO:
What gas? What?
FREAK:
Sometimes the motherf—— use gas which causes tears and runny nose. Just so you know. If it starts, this is where it is.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Understood.
ALEX BABENKO:
OK. And are these chemicals not visible?
FREAK:
They’re not visible at all.
ALEX BABENKO:
Aha.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Listen, maybe come join us in here?
ALEX BABENKO:
Buddy, want to join us in this dugout?
FREAK:
Who are you asking?
ALEX BABENKO:
You.
FEDYA [on radio]:
One c—sucker is near the train track. Maybe he is picking up the guns, I don’t know.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
No, Fedya. He’s shooting.
FREAK:
Our status is all clear. Should we remain at the position?
FEDYA [on radio]:
Affirmative.
ALEX BABENKO:
Your job of course is . . .
FREAK:
It’s the dream. [Laughs] It’s all good. The majority of our guys, if not all, volunteered.
ALEX BABENKO:
This one’s a little closer, yeah?
FREAK:
Nah, not really. [Laughs]
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Is that a helicopter, or what?
FREAK:
Yes.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Is that ours?
FREAK:
Unlikely.
LAVA [on radio]:
Fish, Fish, it’s Lava. I can hear the motherf—— helicopter around the 80th or 90th azimuth.
FREAK:
Yeah, they confirmed it.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Copy.
FREAK:
It’s OK, we’ll finish taking Andriivka and then everyone can go home, shower . . . Man, oh man. A shower after being on the front line is something incredible. And a sauna . . . Mmm, even better. [Laughter]
ALEX BABENKO:
Where are you from?
FREAK:
Me? I’m from Myrnohrad, Pokrovsk area, not far from here.
ALEX BABENKO:
Your Ukrainian is good.
FREAK:
Yeah, I transitioned from Russian. Learned it.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
We transitioned too.
ALEX BABENKO:
We’re from Kharkiv.
FREAK:
I, myself spent the last four years in Kharkiv.
ALEX BABENKO:
Studying?
FREAK:
Yes.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Where?
FREAK:
Kharkiv Polytechnic. I’m still studying there.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
By the way, I graduated from the Kharkiv National University of Radio Electronics.
FREAK:
Ah, I know that one.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
On Nauky Avenue. Nauky Avenue, Nauky.
FREAK:
Kharkiv Radio Electronics University, right?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Yes, KhNURE!
FREAK:
So we are rivals! I’m from KhPI. [Laughs]
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I know.
FREAK:
[Laughs] I can hear your tone changing. [Laughter]
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
OK, that’s it, there’s another dugout over there.
FREAK:
We’ll get back and settle it, who’s better.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
However, to tell you the truth, I hated university. I wanted to finish it as quickly as possible. I finished it and became a journalist.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Friend, tell the guys in Andriivka to stay alert. Load their weapons and prepare for battle. Do you copy?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
As we talk, I’m thinking about Andriivka, focusing on the radio chatter and losing the thread of the conversation. But the camera keeps recording. Freak was 12 when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014. When the full-scale invasion started, he left university, returned to his hometown and joined the Territorial Defense. From there, he moved to the 3rd Assault Brigade.
At the time we speak, he is 22. Five months from now, he will be injured in a battle for another forest, his body never found.
FREAK:
Some people say it’s fate. If the bullet is meant for you, it will be yours . . .
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Do you think so, too?
FREAK:
I think it will depend on my actions, how I behave. Fate is more of an excuse for making the wrong choice.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
It’s hard to deal with a loss if you’re fighting just for a strip of forest. If you think about it, this is just a forest.
FREAK:
Mm-hmm.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Maybe it’s easier to keep fighting when you think this is your destiny.
FREAK:
Well, maybe it’s like that for some. But I go in with the thought that if I’m going, I’m going to stay alive. And there will be fewer Russian motherf——.
1000 Meters
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Freak told us how the brigade fought for this part of the forest, trying to push Russians from their trenches. Halfway to Andriivka. Their helmet cameras captured every step of the battle.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get the grenades, and we should start moving in twos, f—. Start moving before the sun f—- our eyes, or we will not see anything and the assault will fail. One grenade.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Start luring them out.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Take it.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] They still haven’t f—— realized what’s going on. We have 30-40 minutes at best.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Forty minutes left.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Who’s with me?
We’re moving up boys, we’re moving up!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Just a little bit further, about 100 meters further.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Copy!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Good one! Good one!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Cover me, f—. Cover me, f—. F—— s—, are you covering or not? F—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Yes!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Here, take it.
In pairs! Cover!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come on, come on!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Bitch, come out!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Vitos, move forward, got it? Move up.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—, the motherf—– is poking his helmet right in front of you! Bitch! F— him up! Cover me, f—!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, f—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Over there. Right flank, f—.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
The motherf—– is over there. I already f—– him once with the f—— grenade and now he doesn’t want to come out.
Come out, bitch!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Why the f— did you come here, bitch! Tell me, f—! You destroyed my home, you f—— motherf—–! What the f— for, you f—— bitch? F— the motherf——-, f—. Come on, bitch! Come on, bitch!
Kavun! In front of you! Yeah, I got one! He’s f—–!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
One is f—–, but there’s another one!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Kavun is wounded.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Kavun is wounded, f—. Bitch! Faster, f—! Incoming grenade! F—! Bitch! F—— hit right under my feet. F—— hell, my f—— knee.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
To hell with it. Let’s go in. Let’s go!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Boys, faster!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Surrender!
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
We’re surrendering.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Then come out! Come out! Come out! [Speaking Russian] Come out! We won’t shoot, come out. He’s surrendering.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
You have to move in. The motherf—— will send their backup.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Are you coming out or not?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
You have 30 seconds! If you try to throw a grenade at us, you’re a dead man.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come out faster, f—!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come out bitch, come out, come out!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come out, come out! One is coming out over there!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come on!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Tell him to hold hands in the air.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
There, have him get on the ground.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get down!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Collector, tell them to take him alive. Take him alive!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Wait, there are still two motherf—— here.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Take him alive. Take him alive, if possible!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Copy, copy! He’s coming—a grenade! F—, f—— motherf—–! He’s down. Did you f—— see that?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—— motherf—–.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
That’s it. That’s it. He’s down. He’s down.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] F—. Thank you. [Speaking Ukrainian] The grenade landed right in front of my
f—— face.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Are there more of you? Surrender, already!
[Speaking Russian] How many of you are still in there? How many?
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] One wounded guy and me.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Come out and you’ll live!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Come out. We won’t touch you.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
One of you tried to throw a grenade, and he’s dead now. Give him a thermobar, f— and f— him.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Brother, either you f—— surrender or we’re going to finish you off with a f——thermobar.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Let him go f— himself. We don’t have time for games.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come out! [Speaking Russian] Without a grenade, we’ve got three f—— guns. [Speaking Ukrainian] Come out without any grenades. Copy, come on, come on, come on, come on!
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Guys, please.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
That’s it, come out. Faster, f—.
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Look, I don’t have a grenade.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Faster! That way. Up, up. Go to them. Go!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Take the prisoner!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Take the prisoner. Go straight.
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Hands in the air?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Yes, yes.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Boys, the trench is ours, but it’s burning. We can’t enter.
Collector, can you use the drone to see what’s going on up ahead?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
It’s now 10:00 a.m. We are still pinned down in this damned foxhole, waiting to get to Fedya.
Listen to that drone traffic.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Our drones keep moving. If it’s the motherf——, then it hovers.
ALEX BABENKO:
It’s not flying away. Bitch.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Stay sheltered, stay sheltered.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Do you have something to clean the lens with?
ALEX BABENKO:
Yeah.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Give it to me, please. So, during the liberation of the Kharkiv region, I saw the places of my childhood, you know, where I visited my grandmother. But they’re all gone. You are walking on either ruins or graves. What they are liberating . . . it appears as though they are liberating your home, but it’s just ruins and graves instead of liberating home. But . . . But if you don’t do it, it’s even worse. So they are liberating names of places. And they will raise the flag so that the whole country knows that this name is liberated.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Fedya for Freak.
FREAK:
Go for Freak.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Friend, very carefully start moving with your group to Root position, over.
FREAK:
Copy. We’ll be moving out now. OK, boys, get ready.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
It was so nice in here.
At last, we start moving. Andriivka is now 1,000 meters ahead. Halfway. The smell of death, explosives and freshly cut trees becomes stronger. I try to focus on what needs to be done. We need to be there when Fedya raises the flag.
Did you bury the bodies or no?
FREAK:
Ours get taken out. The motherf—— continue to lie there, rotting.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
11:00 a.m. We finally reach Fedya.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Oh, my god. Look who it is.
FEDYA:
Welcome to ground zero!
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
His first question to us: “Where are your guns?”
FEDYA:
OK, boys of the 415th Battalion. Han will be on the walkie-talkie. Now you four . . . Leave them a walkie-talkie and tell them what to do. All the ammo, all the s—, collect it and take it to final position. I don’t hear you. Understood?
415TH BATTALION SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] I said I heard you.
FEDYA:
Why are you without guns? Did you come here to just film or what? [Laughter] Anyway, OK, boys, let’s get going.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Fedya is 24. Battle-promoted to sergeant. He has a scar on his lip from playing war in his childhood and a job in a warehouse before the invasion.
FEDYA:
If the motherf—— weren’t busy bringing in reinforcements, we would have never gotten here. We got lucky.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Freak gives him the flag and a note from headquarters, and he settles in a dugout to read it.
FEDYA:
[Speaking Ukrainian] It’s the 21st century. But for now, this is how we communicate tasks to the front. [Reads letter in Russian] “Fedya, brother, this is Duda writing. Today there are 12 people moving in, the 93rd Brigade. Six into our company and six into the 2nd Assault Battalion. They can be positioned at blah blah blah blah. Brother, you’re staying. All the work is on you. Dinner is on me. Tomorrow we are sending you two flags. A Ukrainian flag and the 3rd Assault Brigade flag. And sending two cameramen. They only want to work with you.” [Speaking Ukrainian] All right, what else. [Speaking Russian] “Keep the guys that you need for tomorrow. Friend, it’s the final push. I’ll be here with Sasha until you finish. Final push, brother.” [Speaking Ukrainian] And that’s that. [Speaking Russian] “To Fedya, from Duda and” . . . who? “And Ivor.” [Speaking Ukrainian] That’s it. I’ll save it.
I never saw myself as a soldier and never wanted to be a soldier. But that doesn’t mean when there is a war in your country, you should refuse to be a soldier. So I came to fight, not serve. They are two different things.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I knew what he meant when he said he never wanted to be a soldier. None of us did.
FEDYA:
That’s f—— better! A machine gun trench, left flank, 10 meters! Kobzar, you’re in charge of the group!
KOBZAR:
Grenade!
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
When we were children, every boy in school got military lessons. We marched, assembled and disassembled Kalashnikovs; we shot, 10 bullets for each young man. But few of us saw any point in this. There was no one to fight with. We had no enemies.
FEDYA:
Use your head, boys. F—. If you don’t take these trainings seriously, on the battlefield you’ll be f—— dead.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Before each battle, Fedya trains his men.
FEDYA:
What do you see in front of yourself, f—! Don’t stay silent!
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
He shouts at them and swears heavily. He knows that some of them will die.
FEDYA:
Clean your weapons. By tomorrow, your weapon needs to be clean and ready for battle. That’s everything. Thank you everyone for the training.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
When Russia invaded Ukraine, each one of us had to make a choice. I took a camera and started filming.
Fedya took a gun.
He was sure Ukraine will win this war.
600 Meters
FEDYA:
So. We are getting ready to go shoot the motherf——. Right, Courier? We will show them the f—— beauty. Look over here, bitch.
COURIER:
Bless you.
FEDYA:
Now we’ll go make trouble.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Fedya told us after the brigade liberated two-thirds of the forest, it was his battalion’s turn to push forward, the first assault operation for many of his men.
FEDYA:
Come on, come on, come on—immediately to the right and take your places. You, at the perimeter to the right, and Shabo, two meters to the left at the back. Shabo, the grenade launcher.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Fedya, Bohun is leaving now.
FEDYA:
Copy, Bohun, get going. Listen carefully to the orders.
Ready? Start moving in twos. Shabo, stay slightly behind. Move.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Fedya, Fedya. Do you copy?
FEDYA:
I hear you. Everything’s f—— great.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Copy, copy, we’ll do it now.
OLIGARCH:
Copy. Friend, hit them to the left.
DUDA:
Copy, we’ll hit them to the left now, 100 meters.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
In headquarters, Duda and other officers guided Fedya and his team through the battlefield.
ALLIGATOR:
Move the fire forward even more.
DUDA:
150 meters forward. 150-200 meters. Copy, copy, Fedya. Be careful. You’re entering the motherf—— territory.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Grenade.
FEDYA:
Grenade. Clear, clear. Get down. Why the f— are you standing up? Covering.
Grenade!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Clear it!
FEDYA:
Duda, Duda, we’re . . . we have contact at 12 o’clock. We’re taking care of it.
FEDYA [on radio]:
Brother, Duda, Duda, tell me what’s up ahead.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Friend, up ahead there’s detonating ammo. About five to seven meters behind that, the motherf—— have a dugout.
DUDA:
Tell the 120 to work it.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
When you can, fire and report.
DUDA:
Motherf——, yeah?
ALLIGATOR:
Abu, Abu, fire two by two.
DUDA:
Fedya, Fedya, there are two motherf—— approaching your dugout. Be careful. Be careful, friend.
ABU:
Alligator, it’s Abu, we’ve fired the mortars.
ALLIGATOR:
Copy, we see them.
Boys, come on, f—, let’s get them, f—.
Our stream is lagging. Where did he go? Where is he running to?
WARSAW [on radio]:
Fish, it’s Warsaw. We’re preparing to fire.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Fire. Fire one shell.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Have the boys duck.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Duda! Have the boys duck!
DUDA:
Yeah?
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Have them duck.
Add zoom. There’s a motherf—–. A motherf—–.
DUDA:
Fedya, Fedya, there’s a motherf—– in the dugout.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
He’s shooting, shooting.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Yeah, they’re shooting.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
They have mortar fire. They’re firing from a mortar.
DUDA:
Boys, stay sheltered, they’re firing from a mortar.
FEDYA:
Good, good. Good, good. Where is your grenade launcher?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
I left it back there.
FEDYA:
[Speaking Russian] We’re close. Ten meters.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—. This trench is too small.
FEDYA:
Let’s f—— shoot.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Duda, Duda, how many meters?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Fifty meters.
FEDYA:
Copy.
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
Motherf—–, surrender! You idiot! You’ll stay alive!
FEDYA:
Come out, you f—!
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
As long as you haven’t f—– any of my guys, I’ll give you the right to live, you f—— idiot!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[In Russian] Shut the f— up!
DUDA:
[Speaking Russian] F—, where the f— is our drone? This is f—— s—, f—.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
We need the suicide drone there.
DUDA:
They got the c—suckers good, f—.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
F—— awesome.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
He’s f—— off, he’s f—— off! Get him. With shells, shells.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Have them shoot at him, too.
DUDA:
Fedya, Fedya, the motherf—— are running away. Shoot them.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Fedya, Fedya, Fedya, the motherf—— are running away. Get them!
FEDYA:
F—— shoot them! The motherf—— are running away! F— them up, boys! I’m empty!
F— boys, you’re amazing, I’m in shock. With you, we could even f— the devil up the ass. [Laughs]
Guys, f—. Yeah? Is this a counteroffensive or what? [Laughs]
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F—, his leg, his leg, his leg!
FEDYA:
Guys, I’m wounded! F—, we have a lot of wounded. We have a lot of wounded.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Get the whole group into a shelter. Everyone into a shelter.
FEDYA:
Brother, is my ass bleeding?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Yes.
FEDYA:
Yes. F— it.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Provide first aid under cover.
FEDYA [on radio]:
I got hit in the ass.
DUDA:
Fedya got hit with a piece of shrapnel in the ass, brother.
MALE VOICE:
Have them move out now.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Duda, Duda, Fedya is lightly wounded.
DUDA:
Give him first aid.
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Guys, pay attention to who reports the wounded.
DUDA:
[Speaking Russian] Quiet. Quiet, f—!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
It’s a little bit chaotic here. Watch the forest and shoot the motherf—— so they remember who we are.
DUDA:
Copy, copy, friend. We’re on it, we’re on it.
DUDA:
Boys, send the medevac towards the basin.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Heavily wounded in the leg is arriving. How do you copy?
UKRAINIAN MEDIC:
Copy, copy.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Another 300 meters were taken. But the further they advanced, the harder it was to keep pushing.
Medics could not believe all these casualties were coming from that tiny forest.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
We have a wounded, wounded. We have someone wounded. Duda, Ostop was shot.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
If they continued losing so many men, they would not be able to finish the offensive.
MALE NEWSREADER:
U.S. officials say Ukraine’s much-anticipated offensive is slowly moving forward.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
Progress is modest but steady, according to the Ukrainian forces as they reclaim villages and trenches dug by Russian forces.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
Ukraine says it has liberated several villages from the Russians in recent days.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Villagers emerged from the basements, the bunkers they’d been hiding in and were overjoyed to see Ukrainian troops there, to see the blue and yellow Ukrainian flag flying over their village once again.
FEMALE UKRAINIAN CIVILIAN:
Don’t cry. We are finally home.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Over in the northeast, that cauldron of violence, Bakhmut, has also been the scene of some Ukrainian gains of a few kilometers in recent days.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
Ukraine also taking high casualties.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Ukraine is a relative David to Russia’s Goliath. It can’t afford to lose three times the soldiers that Russia does, so it has to proceed carefully. If that isn’t good enough and actually they still end up in a stalemate, Western confidence is likely to dip.
MALE NEWSREADER:
If we’re not getting results here, then perhaps Ukraine wants to think about another plan, even some land concessions for peace.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
If Ukraine falls, then Russian forces will be on Europe’s doorstep, and it becomes NATO’s war.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
1:30 p.m. We stop again to wait for the artillery duel to finish. The day seems endless. After his injury, Fedya was sent to the hospital. He quickly recovered and returned to the forest.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Attention. Possibly neighbors on the right.
FEDYA:
Copy, copy. Possible attack from the right flank.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Copy. They’re working Panda, correct?
FEDYA:
They’re targeting Andriivka. Andriivka. Also they’re working from azimuth 110, targeting Andriivka.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
And a tank was shooting from there, right?
FEDYA:
Yeah, yeah. They also had a rocket launcher positioned over there on the white hill. But we destroyed it with Grad rockets.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] The only way to move through Andriivka is sprinting, f—— right?
FEDYA:
No, just move quickly. Quickly. Four people, 10-minute intervals and you’ll be fine.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Are you going there?
FEDYA:
A little bit later. When you guys move in, then we’ll go.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Understood, OK.
FEDYA:
We’re having a ceremony there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] OK, see you later then.
FEDYA:
OK, stay in touch. You’re also going in?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Well, you know, according to our positions.
FEDYA:
Copy.
There is nothing left over there. Literally nothing.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
So, what are we fighting for?
FEDYA:
To rebuild it. This is our land, however you spin it. But even by the same example, these fields, these forests, everything will grow back. Everything blooms again, grows. And same with all these cities we are fighting for. Over time, they will be rebuilt. And maybe we’ll live even better than before. Because all this Soviet influence will be gone. We’ll be starting from scratch. I think that war is probably the best time in life to just start everything over from scratch. And we have such a moment now. We need to keep pushing. Push out the motherf—— and begin from scratch. And I think we’ll be all right.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Shells are flying by like . . . bees.
SHEVA:
Don’t take a picture of me, I haven’t done anything yet.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
What?
SHEVA:
I haven’t earned it yet. I’ve just arrived. I haven’t done anything yet.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Is this your first battle?
SHEVA:
Yes.
ALEX BABENKO:
You made it here. You have already done more than . . . the majority of our people.
Do you smoke?
SHEVA:
I smoke like a freight train.
ALEX BABENKO:
Do you want a hand-rolled one?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I’ll make you one.
SHEVA:
After we get out of here, there’s a lot that I will change.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Work out?
SHEVA:
Yeah. And cigarettes, well maybe I shouldn’t say that I’ll quit smoking. But maybe I’ll just smoke a normal amount, without all these extra smoke breaks.
And then a little faster, and faster, and then in the evening go on a little walk.
These are interesting.
ALEX BABENKO:
Huh?
SHEVA:
This is interesting. I’m not a connoisseur, but this is really different from what I usually smoke.
ALEX BABENKO:
I like these much more than cigarettes. First, you roll them yourself and smoke less, because you need time to roll. But a cigarette, you just pick up and smoke. But with these, you need to sit down calmly, roll it to smoke, and even rolling it calms you.
SHEVA:
Here’s an idea for me after I leave here: buy my own rolls.
ALEX BABENKO:
I’ll leave you this tobacco.
SHEVA:
No, no, you’ll still need it.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I don’t like your hand rolls.
ALEX BABENKO:
Don’t like? You can make your own, then.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
No, I just think that smoking, for me it is an aesthetic act . . . An aesthetic act.
SHEVA:
Today I understood my wife. How she worries about me, because today I started worrying about her. I started to worry about her because she’s worried about me. She goes to work, does her job, then helps the children and our grandson. How much strength goes into all that worrying. I’m worried that she needs to bring water into the house by winter. After all, with a small child . . . Also I need to fix the toilet. Water. The water is the most important. The level of the water in the well dropped and it became dirty. And we drilled it 15 meters deeper. We hope there will be enough clean water.
ALEX BABENKO:
Does your wife know where you are?
SHEVA:
Well, now, yes.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
And?
SHEVA:
Home. She tells me to come home. Just get home by any means possible.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
What did you reply?
SHEVA:
I said, “You know I can’t come.” She says, “I know, but you know I have to ask you.”
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Sheva is 46. At the beginning of the counteroffensive, he left a comfortable position in the military police to volunteer with the 3rd Assault Brigade. He will be injured in a battle five months from now and will die in a hospital.
SHEVA:
I have just one request. Don’t make me out as a hero. I’m really asking you, because . . .
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
What do you mean?
SHEVA:
Well, I haven’t . . .
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Go on, go on.
SHEVA:
Well, I haven’t done anything heroic yet and here I am on camera. I . . . it shouldn’t be like that. There are those who have done so much.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
How do you think the camera can make you look like a hero if you’re not a hero?
300 Meters
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
For the next battle, Fedya’s friend and second-in-command, Gagarin, replaced him in the forest.
GAGARIN:
[Speaking Russian] This is “good morning.” Best job in the world.
DUDA [on radio]:
Gagarin, Gagarin. This is Duda.
GAGARIN:
Friend, receiving.
DUDA [on radio]:
Friend, did you send anyone to the finish?
GAGARIN:
Negative. Negative, negative.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
He was 24. Hometown: Polonne, western Ukraine. He worked as a truck driver in Europe. When the full-scale invasion started, he returned and volunteered. He led the platoon to battle. They had to move another 300 meters and reach the end of the forest.
After that, it was Andriivka.
KOBZAR:
I’m empty, Gagarin.
GAGARIN:
Come on. Get up.
KOBZAR:
Wait, Gagarin.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Courier, Courier, to the left, to the left.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Boys, advance more, advance more!
KOBZAR:
Who?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Advance more!
KOBZAR:
Wait. Chappa is wounded! Yeah?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Yeah.
KOBZAR:
Chappa is wounded.
GAGARIN:
Chappa is wounded.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Gagarin, we’re working on it, we’re on it. [Speaking Ukrainian] Grenades are being brought to the right flank. Brother, look, if you have someone who’s wounded, figure out who’s replacing him, and take shelter, take shelter.
GAGARIN:
What’s going on with Chappa?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
He got hit in the arm.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Gagarin, Gagarin, who’s injured? Who’s injured?
GAGARIN:
Chappa is injured. Give us Soyka and one more person, quickly! Apollo, advance. Come on!
KOBZAR:
A machine gunner.
GAGARIN:
Soyka, Soyka, Soyka!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
F— him up, he’s injured.
GAGARIN:
F— them up! Surrender, motherf—–!
KOBZAR:
Gagarin? Gagarin is either wounded or killed, guys! Boys, we’re holding the line! Boys, hold the line! Don’t back down!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Duda, Gagarin is wounded.
KOBZAR:
Boys, cover where you are. Do not move up!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Duda, Gagarin is wounded. Courier, you replace Gagarin.
KOBZAR:
Gagarin? I’m empty! Cover me!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Boys, throw the grenades f—— ahead of you. [Speaking Russian] There’s a wounded motherf—– sitting there, shooting.
KOBZAR:
We aren’t advancing! Boys, hold your positions!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Boys, there are only two motherf—— in front of you. Only two. And one of them is wounded, c—sucker.
KOBZAR:
Fish, Fish. I think Gagarin has been killed. Fish! Get down, f—! Gagarin? Gagarin! Brother! Gagarin, please no! Guys, cover me! Gagarin?
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Boys, right flank, fire two grenades f—— at 12 o’clock. What’s your status, what’s your status? Boys, status update!
KOBZAR:
Guys, Gagarin is down! Gagarin has been killed!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Copy, copy. Hold the right flank! There are two motherf—— there!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Boys, throw the grenades, throw the grenades.
COURIER:
Advance!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
[Speaking Russian] Throw the grenades.
KOBZAR:
I’m empty!
COURIER:
Throw the grenades!
KOBZAR:
Where are the porters? We need porters to take him.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
The porters are on their way, they’re coming!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Boys, there’s only 20 meters remaining until our finish. Come on guys. This is it!
COURIER:
Boys, only 20 more meters!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Boys, you only have 20 meters left until our finish, only 20 meters left!
COURIER:
Come on, boys!
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Gagarin was laid to rest in his hometown, Polonne, 972 kilometers from Andriivka. And the entire neighborhood came to his funeral to be with his mother as she cried.
They said it was the 56th funeral here.
GAGARIN’S MOTHER:
They say that heroes never die. But they do. Heroes die, and those who don’t fight survive. That’s how it is. Our heroes are killed. “Heroes don’t die.” My God, they’ll kill all our boys soon, and then who will be left?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Kobzar, the soldier who held Gagarin’s hand as he was dying in the forest, will be killed five months from now by a drone strike in a battle for another village.
MALE FUNERAL SPEAKER:
Who are we burying? We are burying our children! Women bury their husbands. Children bury their parents. And unfortunately, we are burying the parents of children yet to be born. Our boys still had everything ahead of them. They could have been entrepreneurs, agriculturalists, miners. When the time came, they took up weapons and went to defend us. Us.
MALE NEWSREADER:
Western officials have expressed disappointment in a much-vaunted counteroffensive, which began in June. Ukraine has only taken back an estimated 100 square miles of territory since then.
MALE NEWSREADER:
U.S. intelligence is now saying that Ukraine will fail to meet their counteroffensive key goals.
FEMALE NEWSREADER:
How sustainable is this level of support when there’s really no end in sight to the war?
MALE NEWSREADER:
Russia has millions more men from whom to draw. There’s no path to a military victory here, only more death.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
The counteroffensive was failing. Few believed Ukraine could advance any further. But the brigade decided to make its last stand. As Gagarin was laid to rest, the final battle for Andriivka began.
Andriivka
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
It’s a smokescreen.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
All the battalions gathered their forces. First, they took positions on the edge of the forest and in houses on the outskirts. Then, under the cover of the smokescreen bombs, they moved in.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Two Zero. Start now. Start moving. How do you copy?
TWO ZERO:
Fanta, Fanta.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Take positions. There’s the basement.
TWO ZERO:
Cover me.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Did you toss it?
TWO ZERO:
Yeah.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
There’s a drone! Suicide drone!
TWO ZERO:
FPV!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
It left.
TWO ZERO:
It left. Come on, get down there. Clear it. Come on, get inside.
It’s clear, clear. Clear!
Shoot an RPG there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Who is that?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
It’s a motherf—–.
TWO ZERO:
Brother, get down, get down.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Toss a grenade!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Guys, move on that side.
TWO ZERO:
On the left side.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Surrender, bitch!
TWO ZERO:
[Speaking Russian] F—— motherf——!
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Crawl over here, f—, unarmed!
TWO ZERO:
[Speaking Russian] Surrender, f—–! Surrender motherf—–!
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
There’s one motherf—– near you.
TWO ZERO:
Two Zero. Copy.
RUSSIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] Help me, f—!
TWO ZERO:
[Whispering] Stop. Stop.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
There’s a motherf—– over there.
TWO ZERO:
Come on, faster, faster, faster, faster. Pull him here. Pull him.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
After you’re done pulling him, cover us.
TWO ZERO:
This Russian doesn’t have documents and says his rank is major. How do you copy?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
[Speaking Russian] How many people were here? How many people?
TWO ZERO:
Detroit, Detroit. His rank is major and he doesn’t have any documents on him. How do you copy? Is it going through?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
It’s not going through. [Speaking Russian] You had 120 people. Who’s the commander?
ABDUL RACKHMANOV, Russian soldier:
Yava.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
[Speaking Russian] The commander goes by the call sign Yava.
TWO ZERO:
[Speaking Russian] Your name and surname?
ABDUL RACKHMANOV:
Abdul Rackhmanov.
TWO ZERO:
[Speaking Russian] How many of your people here are still able to fight?
ABDUL RACKHMANOV:
[Speaking Russian] No one.
TWO ZERO:
[Speaking Russian] Do you think it was my dream at 19 years old to be f—— fighting with you? [Speaking Ukrainian] Why the f— did you come here? F—. What?
ABDUL RACKHMANOV:
[Speaking Russian] I don’t know why we came here.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Attention everyone. The enemy is preparing to carry out indiscriminate strikes. Stay alert.
FEDYA:
Fedya for Fish. Fedya for Fish.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
2:00 p.m. We are 100 meters from Andriivka.
FISH [on radio]:
Go for Fish.
FEDYA:
Me and my two friends are on the move.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Fedya instructs us to start moving.
FEDYA:
Move as fast as you can. If you hear an incoming shell, get down. That’s it. Move.
Here we run.
Andriivka.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
We are finally in Andriivka.
As Russians retreated, their artillery shot indiscriminately. They were erasing the village from the map.
In the last 100 meters, there are bodies scattered everywhere. Mostly Russians. A few Ukrainians.
As we walk in, Fedya receives a message that one of the soldiers in his platoon has been injured.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Hello.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come on, come on.
FEDYA:
Who? Bohun?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Yeah, just now. They hit us right before you came.
FEDYA:
Copy.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Come inside. Don’t stand there.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Wasp. Wasp. What is your status?
FEDYA:
It’s me, Fedya. Do you recognize me, brother? Let’s get up and move. Will you be able to move on your own?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
He’s severely shell-shocked.
FEDYA:
Come on, brother.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
We run to the ruins of another house. This one at least has a basement.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Get in here, quick. Come on, come on.
FEDYA:
Bohun, how are you brother?
F—, this basement is about to collapse.
Fedya for Red, Fedya for Red. F—. Not bad.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Lava, we’ve been hit. How do you copy?
FEDYA:
The bitches are working.
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
What?
FEDYA:
The 120mm mortar.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Copy. Fedya, how do you copy?
FEDYA:
Copy. We’re waiting. As soon as it calms down, we’ll be moving out.
We need to secure the flag. It’s going to be great. [Laughs] What else? God dammit. Good.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
We settle in the basement, and artillery keeps hitting us. It’s only now the understanding comes to me. We really are in Andriivka. But the village doesn’t exist anymore. Among the ruins, there is hardly a place to raise the flag. The villagers are dead or gone. Everything is destroyed—people, animals, memories. And all that is left of it is a name.
FEDYA:
Red, Red. Tell them that his status is improved, improved. He’s come around a bit.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
Fedya, I’m not receiving.
FEDYA:
F—, I have to go out.
ALEX BABENKO:
Ah, f—.
PANDA [on radio]:
It’s Panda. They’re hitting Wasp.
FEDYA:
You son of a bitch!
ALEX BABENKO:
Can a tank shell break through these walls?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Of course it can.
And that’s it. The village is gone.
FEDYA:
There’s nothing left. But imagine this village restored in a couple of years.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
I don’t argue, but I doubt it will happen. I know Ukraine doesn’t have enough resources to continue the counteroffensive. I know the Russians will continue to reduce cities to a state where there aren’t even bricks left. And the longer it all goes on, the less the world will care about it. I’m afraid this land will remain a frozen front line for years.
ALEX BABENKO:
Really? A cat in Andriivka? We need to save it. Now you will be in the 3rd Assault Brigade.
So is it a boy or a girl?
FEDYA:
She’s a girl. She’s a calico, see?
ALEX BABENKO:
Then her name will be Andriivka.
Kitty, we’re going to get you out of here.
FEDYA:
Come on close it. Close the backpack. Zip it, zip it.
ALEX BABENKO:
So that she . . .
FEDYA:
She’ll get air in there.
[Cat meows] Be patient. You’ll be a Cossack.
Not bad.
Nice. Beauty. So. Now we’ll make two holes. And we’ll tie it to a stick through this. We’ll get it in here, like this. Oh, and we’ll tie it like this.
ALEX BABENKO:
Well, yeah.
FEDYA:
We’ll just tie it around a couple times, just like that, and it won’t go anywhere.
How do you like it?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIER:
Amazing.
FEDYA:
Super. The Russians are going to lose their s— now. Are you ready? Are you ready?
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Are you ready?
FEDYA:
Me? Yeah.
Dive in the basement. There, to the basement.
Got it? Take a video. It’s Sept. 16 and the 3rd Assault Brigade has completely liberated the village of Andriivka! Glory to the nation! Death to our enemies! That’s it. Let’s go.
Andriivka is ours! And more to come! All right guys, keep your distance and follow me.
Friends, the flag is secured, Andriivka is officially ours. Over.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
8:00 p.m. When we were sitting in the basement, Fedya told me in his dreams, he fights like hell in this forest. Then he wakes up and goes back to the battle.
And I thought, this war is a nightmare none of us can wake up from. I envy Fedya because he believes we will. He has the names of his friends and the cities he has lost, and a gun and a flag to avenge them.
MALE VOICE [on radio]:
You are the second evac. You’re the last one.
FEDYA:
Copy. I can hear the evac coming.
[Cat meows] It’s OK. Just a little bit more. [Sighs]
ALEX BABENKO:
A little more.
FEDYA:
Yeah. That’s it. The worst is behind us.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Is there anything you want to say to this damn forest?
FEDYA:
I’m f—— over stomping around this forest. I want to go home. I want to shower, eat and sleep. I want to sleep.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
How long will you sleep?
FEDYA:
Until morning. And in the morning I’ll go back. There is still a lot of work. Besides missions, there is paperwork to do. Sheva, f—, smile. Why are you so sour? For f— sake.
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
Sheva?
SHEVA:
Yeah, I’m here.
FEDYA:
Smile, smile!
MSTYSLAV CHERNOV:
What if this war is until the end of our lives?
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Variah?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Tym?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Belka?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Zyma?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Malyi?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Kuzia?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Markella?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Jamaica?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Casanova?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Foma?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Sahan?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Khottabych?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Hrom?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Guyz?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Yar?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Shakhtar?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Kavun?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Snieh?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
UKRAINIAN OFFICER:
Gagarin?
UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS [in unison]:
Present!
Andriivka and most of the land reclaimed during the 2023 counteroffensive was occupied by Russia again.
By November 2025, Russia controlled more than 115,000 sq. kilometers—nearly 20%—of Ukraine.
WRITTEN, FILMED AND DIRECTED BY Mstyslav Chernov
BATTLE SCENES RECORDED BY MEMBERS OF THE 3rd ASSAULT BRIGADE
OPENING BATTLE Piro
2000 METERS BATTLE Kapter Mystic
1000 METERS BATTLE Angel Vitos
600 METERS BATTLE Fedya Courier
300 METERS BATTLE Kobzar
ANDRIIVKA BATTLE Baton Two Zero
COORDINATORS: Gerych, Fiba, Lisnyk, Zmist
ADDITIONAL CINEMATOGRAPHY Alex Babenko
EDITED BY Michelle Mizner, ACE
ORIGINAL SCORE Sam Slater
PRODUCED BY Mstyslav Chernov Michelle Mizner Raney Aronson-Rath
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