A group of Ukrainian soldiers moves swiftly through a front-line training ground, overcoming obstacles and firing at distant targets. They are fine-tuning their battle skills here as Ukraine\u2019s counteroffensive against Russian forces rages just few miles to the south. <\/p>\n
One fighter, Danilo, who is only being identified by his first name for security reasons, stands out. He is fast and accurate, but his movements are different. <\/p>\n
Another glance reveals the reason for his slight limp \u2013 he has a prosthetic limb where his lower right leg used to be. <\/p>\n
Danilo lost his lower right leg early in Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. He and his unit were on a mission when they came under fire and he stepped on a landmine. <\/p>\n
His maiming, and similar injuries to many others, both soldiers and civilians, are just one of the many consequences of Russia\u2019s brutal war on Ukraine. <\/p>\n
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Moscow\u2019s forces have littered an estimated 170,000 square kilometers (65,637 square miles) of the Ukrainian countryside with landmines \u2013 an area the size of Florida \u2013 a large portion of them along the southern front, in a bid to halt Kyiv\u2019s counteroffensive. International think tank GLOBSEC found Ukraine to be the most mined country in the world in a report published in April. <\/p>\n
As Ukrainian troops grind forward, these hidden explosives are one of the major perils they must navigate, with potentially drastic consequences. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we had contact (with the Russian forces), I had to move away from the trail,\u201d Danilo said. \u201cI blew up on the mine\u2026 We kept firing, my guys finished the job and evacuated me.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no leg. And the other leg was broken,\u201d he said, recalling those adrenaline-fueled moments. \u201cI was afraid they would cut off the second leg too. It\u2019s a miracle they didn\u2019t.\u201d <\/p>\n
Eight grueling months of rehabilitation followed. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a very, very long recovery. I lost a lot of blood, it was a heavy amputation, heavy bone fracture,\u201d he recalled. <\/p>\n
The first part of his recuperation recovery took place was done in Ukraine, but two months later, Danilo and his wife moved to Mexico, where with the help of the Ukrainian diaspora he was able to get a prosthetic limb fitted, as well as psychological support. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was hard as my other leg was also injured. I couldn\u2019t step on it for eight months,\u201d he explained. \u201cThere were some difficulties at first, but the competent doctors put me back on my feet.\u201d <\/p>\n
Vlad, also only identified by his first name, is a Ukrainian combat medic whose unit is always on standby. When a call comes, his group heads straight to the front line to extract the wounded. <\/p>\n
Vlad says his job is no less dangerous because of his status as a medic. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of shelling directed at us,\u201d he said. \u201cDespite us having red crosses on our vehicles the Russians ignore the Geneva Convention. It makes sense \u2013 if you kill the medics, many soldiers won\u2019t receive first aid.\u201d <\/p>\n
The risks do not discourage Vlad from making his way to the front. Time, he says, is essential in treating injuries such as Danilo\u2019s if the patient is to make a good recovery. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt depends on how fast medical aid was provided and we provide it fast,\u201d Vlad said. <\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the areas are mined. And to advance further we use engineering vehicles and sappers. Most of the those injured by mines in the last few months are sappers,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe injuries are worse now than they were six months ago. We have much more work now.\u201d <\/p>\n
Kyiv has not publicly acknowledged it is taking more casualties in recent months. <\/p>\n
Following his recuperation in Mexico, Danilo is back in the battle, supporting Ukrainian forces as they advance in the south. He joined Ukraine\u2019s counteroffensive shortly after arriving back in the country at the end of July. <\/p>\n
\u201cI got back into service two days after returning to Zaporizhzhia. For a month I was an instructor. Then I asked for a transfer to the front,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cNow I\u2019m the main sergeant in a fire support unit. I\u2019m in charge of mortar, grenade launcher and anti-tank squads,\u201d he explained. \u201cThe platoon commander and I choose the right positions, targets, plan the operations.\u201d <\/p>\n
His injuries do not slow him down, he swears. \u201cIf I wasn\u2019t efficient, I wouldn\u2019t be here, they would send me to an HQ to do paperwork.\u201d <\/p>\n
Though quick to return to the front line, Danilo says he hates war and combat. \u201cI don\u2019t like to see my brothers wounded or killed,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
But despite that, and the trauma he\u2019s experienced, he says there\u2019s no way he could have just stayed at home and watched. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn a country under attack, every man has to stand up from the couch and defend his home,\u201d he said. \u201cI have to do it and I\u2019m good at it. We need people with my experience. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have a choice\u2026 The counteroffensive can\u2019t fail,\u201d Danilo continued. \u201cWe are defending our home. It\u2019s victory or death for us.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
A group of Ukrainian soldiers moves swiftly through a front-line training ground, overcoming obstacles and firing at distant targets. They are fine-tuning their battle skills here as Ukraine\u2019s counteroffensive against Russian forces rages just few miles to the south. One fighter, Danilo, who is only being identified by his first name for security reasons, stands <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":9430,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9429","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9429"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9429\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}