Life in Ukraine

Amid Russia’s relentless assaults in eastern Ukraine, volunteers and soldiers have begun rescuing medieval “stone babas”—statues carved 800 years ago—from the frontline. What are these statues and why do they matter?

Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies launched a large investigation this week, targeting procurement abuses at Energoatom , the state-run nuclear energy giant with nearly $5 billion in annual revenue. The operation has already triggered suspensions in the Cabinet of Ministers and the dissolution of the company’s Supervisory Board. Its consequences may prove to be a crucial test for Ukraine’s image.

When the full-scale war began, businesses left Russia due to sanctions, while their departures across Ukraine were driven by the threat of Russian missile strikes. Now, big brands are coming back to Ukraine. Here’s how global companies are learning to operate under air-raid alerts—and sometimes, underground.

Ukraine’s black soil is fertile and forgiving. It has fed nations, outlasted ideologies, and survived occupation. But even the finest earth has its limits. Across Ukraine, the land that once sustained villages turned into the frontline: mined, scorched, and contaminated. Three years of war have driven people from their homes and forced Ukrainians from their motherland. As farmers return home to mined fields, what was once a livelihood has become an act of endurance and a form of resistance.

The Bayeux War Correspondents’ Award highlights the crucial role of photojournalism in a world dominated by social media, featuring powerful exhibitions and tributes to journalists like Antoni Lallican, killed by a Russian FPV drone on the Ukrainian frontline.

War leaves its mark on everyone—soldiers and civilians, children and adults. We have traveled across Ukraine, collecting stories of people whose lives were forever affected by eye injuries sustained following Russian strikes.