Into the Fog: My First Journey to the Frontline

I will never forget my first trip with the team. It was a cold February day, and the fog made it difficult to see anything more than a few meters in front of us. We had to get to the city of Sumy quickly because we had many tasks and meetings with local partners there. As always, the work couldn’t wait for our arrival, so I worked from my laptop in the van, trying to complete everything successfully while we swerved to avoid accidents with trucks and checkpoints that appeared out of nowhere from the fog. 

The next day was much more difficult and scary for me personally because we went to the front-line community of Hotin in Sumska Oblast to deliver medical supplies. It was my first visit to the frontline, and I didn’t know what to expect. Hotin is located within 3 km of the border with Russia. The situation in the village is extremely serious, and we spent time discussing evacuations of civilians. We then met with the mayor, who briefed us on the community’s needs and the current situation while thanking us for the hospital beds, medical monitor, and medical supplies we delivered. We then visited a bomb shelter that we are equipping to allow the residents of the village a safe place to sleep and hide from the constant attacks. 

By an unfortunate coincidence, Russian troops tried to enter the settlement that day. We unloaded the van to the sounds of artillery and mortars, which were getting closer by the minute. We heard over the radio that Russian soldiers were just a couple of hundred meters away, and we needed to leave immediately. On the outskirts of the village, we stopped as the local council wanted to give us something. They wanted to thank us by providing books on the village’s history, mushrooms, and delicious honey. The generosity of the communities we work with always amazes me. 

We returned to Sumy to continue our meetings with hospitals and other partners in the city, carrying on with our work as if we hadn’t just been a few hundred meters from the line of contact. I was so impressed at how our team was able to be shelled one minute and sitting drinking tea and talking to our partners about how best to support them the next. 

Viktoria Bashkirova
Assistant to the Head of Mission