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Life in Ukraine

Love, Loss, and Resistance in Ukraine, in Photos

4 min read
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Photo of Josh Olley
Josh Olley
Photojournalist

In war, many moments become crossroads—between staying and leaving, fighting and falling, survival and sacrifice. A husband and wife share a final embrace before she evacuates. Former prisoners take up arms to defend Ukraine. A father carries on his sons’ legacy. And in Washington, a meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy signals a shifting diplomatic landscape. These photos capture the resilience, tension, and evolving alliances shaping Ukraine’s fight for survival.

MAR 02 — Natalia shares a final embrace with her husband before leaving their hometown of Pokrovsk. She and her 16-year-old son are being evacuated by the “White Angels” special police unit, while her husband stays behind to care for her ailing mother in their basement. The White Angels are expected to return for him in a week. (Photo by Anton Shtuka)
MAR 02 — Natalia shares a final embrace with her husband before leaving their hometown of Pokrovsk. She and her 16-year-old son are being evacuated by the “White Angels” special police unit, while her husband stays behind to care for her ailing mother in their basement. The White Angels are expected to return for him in a week. (Photo by Anton Shtuka)
FEB 26 — Former prisoners who have now become volunteers and fighters in Ukraine’s 93rd Brigade, serving in the “Alcatraz” Battalion. (Photo by Andriy Dubchak / Frontliner)
FEB 26 — Former prisoners who have now become volunteers and fighters in Ukraine’s 93rd Brigade, serving in the “Alcatraz” Battalion. (Photo by Andriy Dubchak / Frontliner)
MAR 04 — The Art of war or Rules of caring for a rifle. The name of the project consists of two parts. The first – “The Art of war” – about a general view of the war in Ukraine. This is an attempt to describe how this war is fought, which follows the same principles as any other war hundreds of years ago, from the perspective of Sun Tzu’s ancient work – The Art of War. According to it – where you are slow, pretend to be fast, and where you are fast, pretend to be slow; where you are strong, pretend to be weak, where you are weak, pretend to be strong. (Photo by Dmytro Kypriyan)
MAR 04 — The Art of war or Rules of caring for a rifle. The name of the project consists of two parts. The first – “The Art of war” – about a general view of the war in Ukraine. This is an attempt to describe how this war is fought, which follows the same principles as any other war hundreds of years ago, from the perspective of Sun Tzu’s ancient work – The Art of War. According to it – where you are slow, pretend to be fast, and where you are fast, pretend to be slow; where you are strong, pretend to be weak, where you are weak, pretend to be strong. (Photo by Dmytro Kypriyan)
MAR 04 — The Art of war or Rules of caring for a rifle. The second part in the title – “Rules for caring for a rifle” – is about specific everyday routine actions that soldiers ought to do in order to achieve victory for all of us in general. For that purpose they need to learn and repeat the same actions and movements every day, bringing them to sophistication, mastery and perfection – whether it’s cooking, or training on the range, or simply cleaning weapons.(Photo by Dmytro Kypriyan)
MAR 04 — The Art of war or Rules of caring for a rifle. The second part in the title – “Rules for caring for a rifle” – is about specific everyday routine actions that soldiers ought to do in order to achieve victory for all of us in general. For that purpose they need to learn and repeat the same actions and movements every day, bringing them to sophistication, mastery and perfection – whether it’s cooking, or training on the range, or simply cleaning weapons.(Photo by Dmytro Kypriyan)
MAR 05 — North Korean soldier Ri, 26, captured by Ukrainian forces, was led to believe they would be fighting South Koreans aiding Ukraine. Instead, they found themselves battling Ukrainians in Russia’s Kursk region. Indoctrinated by North Korea’s secret police, Ri was taught that surrender was treason—until the battlefield revealed a different reality. (Photo by Sasha Maslov for WSJ)
MAR 05 — North Korean soldier Ri, 26, captured by Ukrainian forces, was led to believe they would be fighting South Koreans aiding Ukraine. Instead, they found themselves battling Ukrainians in Russia’s Kursk region. Indoctrinated by North Korea’s secret police, Ri was taught that surrender was treason—until the battlefield revealed a different reality. (Photo by Sasha Maslov for WSJ)
FEB 26 — “Landscapes of War” Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Photo by Emilien Urbano)
FEB 26 — “Landscapes of War” Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Photo by Emilien Urbano)
FEB 26 — “Landscapes of War” Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Photo by Emilien Urbano)
FEB 26 — “Landscapes of War” Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Photo by Emilien Urbano)
MAR 04 — Coal mining at the “Heroes of Space” mine in Pavlohrad, Ukraine. As Ukraine fights for survival, its mineral resources have become a bargaining chip in negotiations over continued U.S. support against Russia’s invasion. (Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
MAR 04 — Coal mining at the “Heroes of Space” mine in Pavlohrad, Ukraine. As Ukraine fights for survival, its mineral resources have become a bargaining chip in negotiations over continued U.S. support against Russia’s invasion. (Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
MAR 05 — Two brothers, one fight. The funeral of Vasyl Ratushnyi—a drone pilot, a soldier—who now joins his younger brother, Roman Ratushnyi, killed in 2022. Their father, a serviceman, has lost both his sons to the war.(Photo by Taras Fedorenko/Slidstvo.info)
MAR 05 — Two brothers, one fight. The funeral of Vasyl Ratushnyi—a drone pilot, a soldier—who now joins his younger brother, Roman Ratushnyi, killed in 2022. Their father, a serviceman, has lost both his sons to the war.(Photo by Taras Fedorenko/Slidstvo.info)
FEB 24 2025. (Photo by Ukrainian Air Force)
FEB 24 2025. (Photo by Ukrainian Air Force)
MAR 08 — For the first time, French Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets joined Ukraine’s air defense, intercepting Russian missiles in a massive attack on the country’s energy and gas infrastructure. (Photo by @Ukranian_defence)
MAR 08 — For the first time, French Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets joined Ukraine’s air defense, intercepting Russian missiles in a massive attack on the country’s energy and gas infrastructure. (Photo by @Ukranian_defence)
FEB 25 — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Photo by Evgeny Maloletka)
FEB 25 — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Photo by Evgeny Maloletka)
MAR 01 — Church of The Protection of the Mother of God, Podil, Kyiv. (Photo by Oleksandr Rudovskyi)
MAR 01 — Church of The Protection of the Mother of God, Podil, Kyiv. (Photo by Oleksandr Rudovskyi)
FEB 28 — US President Donald Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) 
FEB 28 — US President Donald Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) 
FEB 25 — The weight of war is measured not only in battles but in the silent work of those who bring the fallen home.” The Platsdarm search and exhumation team tirelessly recovers the bodies of soldiers, often from unmarked graves near the front lines, ensuring they are not lost to history. (Photo by Nikoletta Stoyanova for Platsdarm group)
FEB 25 — The weight of war is measured not only in battles but in the silent work of those who bring the fallen home.” The Platsdarm search and exhumation team tirelessly recovers the bodies of soldiers, often from unmarked graves near the front lines, ensuring they are not lost to history. (Photo by Nikoletta Stoyanova for Platsdarm group)
MAR 01 — Russian Shahed drones—manufactured in Iran—unleashed a massive attack on Kharkiv overnight. The strikes hit the Kharkiv Regional Clinical Hospital, residential buildings, cafés, a supermarket, a gas station, and small businesses, leaving devastation in their wake. (Photo by George Ivanchenko)
MAR 01 — Russian Shahed drones—manufactured in Iran—unleashed a massive attack on Kharkiv overnight. The strikes hit the Kharkiv Regional Clinical Hospital, residential buildings, cafés, a supermarket, a gas station, and small businesses, leaving devastation in their wake. (Photo by George Ivanchenko)
MAR 03 — A SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) image reveals Russian ships stationed in the bay. (Source: The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for the exhibition of the People’s Satellite Foundation)
MAR 03 — A SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) image reveals Russian ships stationed in the bay. (Source: The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for the exhibition of the People’s Satellite Foundation)

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