Ukraine’s convicts take the fight inside Russia
A hard-bitten officer commands a unit of felons—and dreams of kebabs in Moscow
LAUGHTER CUTS through the crunch of gravel as Senior Lieutenant Nazariy Kishak’s jeep arrives. He is four hours late. “It was a shitstorm,” he says, grinning under his crooked boxer’s nose. “A column with 70 Chechens. All with Saint Peter now.” The enemy had been trying to cross the border just north of his unit’s new entry point into Russia.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Freedom on the line”
Europe August 17th 2024
From the August 17th 2024 edition
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Marine Le Pen spooks the bond markets
She threatens to bring down the French government, but also faces a possible ban from politics
The maths of Europe’s military black hole
It needs to spend to defend, but voters may balk
Ukraine’s warriors brace for a Kremlin surge in the south
Vladimir Putin’s war machine is pushing harder and crushing Ukrainian morale
Vladimir Putin fires a new missile to amplify his nuclear threats
The attack on Ukraine is part of a new era of missile warfare
A rise in antisemitism puts Europe’s liberal values to the test
The return of Europe’s oldest scourge
Once dominant, Germany is now desperate
As an election looms its business model is breaking down