RUSSIA | S07 E3 - Why it’s hard to fight when you don’t know why

What does war look like on the ground, for the soldiers who go off to fight? What’s it like to be sent into the muddy confusion of a battlefield, asked to lay down your life for your country?

In this episode: two soldiers. A Ukrainian in his 50s and a Russian in his 20s. One of them is still on the battlefield. The other fought for a week, and is now serving a 15 year prison sentence.

These two stories explain a lot about how Russia messed this up, and how Ukraine was far stronger than anyone realised.

Guests:

• Isabella Higgins - ABC News Europe Correspondent
• Sean Rubinsztein-Dunlop - ABC News Investigative Reporter
• Taras Rodtseyvich - Ukrainian Territorial Defence Volunteer; IT Manager
• Dr Paul Dibb - Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at ANU; Former Director of the Australian Joint Intelligence Organisation
• Zoya Sheftalovich - contributing editor for POLITICO
• POW interview audio courtesy of Volodymyr Zolkin