Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, is practically surrounded. For the inhabitants of this half-empty city, the war looks like a very long, tense expectation of a Russian attack or siege.
Eighteenth day of the war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian capital is practically surrounded, shelling is unfolding in the south of the capital, 30 km from the city center.
The war in Kyiv is the story of a very long and tense wait.
The military positions almost do not change: the Russian army is located to the east and west of the city. From the center of the city, we hear rather distant explosions that rise, that the Russian and Ukrainian armies are facing each other in the same places.
The center of Kyiv is currently not bombed, with the exception of a drone loaded with explosives shot down by the Ukrainian army, which partially destroyed the building, breaking through its roof, and setting it on fire.
There are no victims. Located in the university district, this building is part of a residential area that has not seen any fighting so far.
Building hit by a drone
There is a lot of debris on the sidewalk at the bottom of this building, including pieces of burnt leafy wood. Inside, the air smells of burning. “It’s terrible, it’s a real disaster,” says Alexander. He works here and shows us the holed and badly burned roof.
“Thank God, the drone exploded right in the sky … otherwise half of the building would have caught fire in smoke,” he said.
Fear
Natalya woke up from the explosion. This grandmother is still shaking hands. She wanted to run away, go to Poland with her children and grandchildren, but she could not: “Every morning they call me and tell me to join them. But my husband is sick, I can’t leave him…”.
You can read fear on Natalia’s face. Fear that is more felt inside Luca, a 9-year-old boy.
“I don’t think about the war, I just want us to win so I can get back on the street and go where I want,” explains this child.
While some of his friends have left the capital because the city is half empty, Luka says he wants to stay in Kyiv, at home, with his parents. Like all Kievans, they live in fear, apprehension, uncertainty.
Attack or siege?
Those who remain do not know when and how the Russians will eventually go on the offensive and whether they will try to besiege the city.
The seat is a hypothesis accepted by the Ukrainian General Staff. Before the offensive, there is a lot of preparation, there will be regular artillery shelling, bombing, especially on positions to the east, if the Russian army is going to attack.
It’s not like this Sunday morning. On the other hand, the Ukrainian army notices that Russian troops are trying to eliminate the defenses around the city, including in the south of Kyiv.
If the southern route is blocked, the city will no longer have access. This will be the beginning of the siege.
Nicolas Poincaré and Benois Ballet in Kyiv for RMC