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KYIV, Ukraine — During his speech at the U.N. General Assembly on September 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged world leaders to take action to bring the Russia-Ukraine war to an end as it has created “the most destructive arms race in human history.”
Both Russia and Ukraine, more than three years into a war that has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, are doubling down on their spending on military technology, as any slight improvement in drone warfare technology has the potential to shift the balance of power. Still, as of now, the front in the east of Ukraine is largely frozen; with the constant threat of drone attacks and the reality of a new age of warfare slowing advances, Russia has continued its attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine’s largest cities, including its capital, Kyiv.
President Donald Trump hosted a controversial summit in Anchorage, Alaska, with Russian President Vladimir Putin in August in an attempt to secure an end to the war, which he promised during his campaign to be able to do “in 24 hours.” However, Trump’s relationship with Putin has soured, after, in his words, he realized Putin was talking “a lot of bullshit” on Ukraine. Amidst stalled negotiations and Russia’s provocation of NATO countries by flying fighter jets and drones into Estonian and Polish airspace, respectively, the European continent is on edge, waiting to see if there will be further escalation.
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However, on the ground in Kyiv, the story is different. During the day, it is hard to imagine that the country is in the midst of a full-scale war. Cafes are bustling in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi District, and even at night, when the risk of a drone or missile attack is heightened, families walk down the streets with their pets. Three years into the war, Ukrainians have grown accustomed to the reality of regular air raid alerts, and many, even when there is an alarm, choose not to head to the shelters.
On the table during the U.S.-led peace talks in August was the prospect of an immediate ceasefire along the entire frontline — which Russia was hesitant to agree to due to its slow by steady territorial gains. Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine is determined to recapture all territory it has lost to Russia since 2014, including occupied Crimea. Russia currently controls about 20 percent of Ukrainian territory, but claims much more, including Luhansk and Donetsk, two provinces in Ukraine’s East, which Russia has demanded full control of in exchange for ending the war.
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Casualties on both sides have reached roughly 1 million as the US races to expand production of artillery shells.
Whatever the outcome of the U.S.-led talks, what is clear is that Ukrainian civilians have continued to pay the price for Russia’s full-scale invasion. Kyiv, which is located far into the heart of Ukrainian territory, is subject to almost daily air raids as Russia continues its aerial bombardment campaign. Early in the war, Russia would launch frequent waves of drones and missiles in small quantities, but as the war dragged on and took a significant toll on Russia’s economy, its tactics shifted to coordinating larger and more precise strikes, but less frequently.
At the end of August, Russia launched a strike on Kyiv that killed 18 civilians and was widely condemned by the international community, drawing even rebuke from President Trump, who said he was “not happy” about the attack.
Kyiv’s Independence Square, which was the site of the mass demonstrations in 2013 and 2014 that forced then-President Viktor Yanukovych out of power, has turned into a makeshift memorial for Ukrainians killed during the last three years of war. Ukrainian flags and portraits of the dead dot the plaza, as Ukrainians continue to gather and mourn the devastating cost of the war.
A man visits the memorial of a loved one who was killed by Russian forces, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on September 19, 2025.Theia Chatelle
Some Ukrainians are uncertain about what is slowly becoming a forever war. Polina, 17, who was visiting Kyiv on a guided day trip, said, “We really hope the war ends as soon as possible, by any means. And the buildings, and everything that was destroyed, we want it to be preserved and restored quickly.” According to a recent Gallup poll, 69 percent of Ukrainians would prefer a negotiated end to the war as soon as possible
The reality is that without both the rhetorical and logistical support from the U.S. and its allies, Ukraine would not be able to sustain any resistance to Russia’s growing occupation of Ukrainian territory. The front has shifted slowly westward over the past month, as, despite Ukrainian counteroffensives, Russia has continued to gain territory, kilometer by kilometer in the Eastern provinces, where the majority of the fighting has taken place.
Flags and portraits at Independence Square in Kyiv commemorate Ukrainian soldiers who have been killed during the Russia-Ukraine warTheia Chatelle
The prevailing sentiment that I heard for myself at Independence Square was quite different from what polling found, perhaps due to area’s status as an unofficial site of memorial. Ukrainians I spoke with remain steadfast in their commitment to gain back the territory lost to Russia since the start of the invasion in 2022. What was incredibly clear from speaking with various Ukrainians on the plaza is that, despite the fatigue from living in a country at war for the past three years, many feel they cannot accept land concessions — not after the cost they have paid for the war, the donations to soldiers and their families, and the struggles to the Ukrainian economy as it grapples with a labor shortage.
Marina, 28, visits Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, from Odessa on September 19, 2025. Theia Chatelle
Marina, 28, who was visiting the plaza from Odessa, a city located a six-hour drive to the south of Kyiv, said, “They want to destroy us without conditions, that’s what negotiations are becoming. Every decision and negotiation has great significance when those deals try to eliminate us as a nation.”
For Ukrainians, the war is a struggle against an impending “Ukrainian genocide,” as multiple Ukrainians with whom I spoke described it, so in their view, there is no other option than to keep fighting. Valeriy Petrovych Ustynenko, 73, who has two sons fighting in the Ukrainian military, said, “But if the time comes, when even people like me, people my age, have to go to the front, then we will fight.”
Valeriy Petrovych Ustynenko, 73, has two sons fighting in the Ukrainian military.Theia Chatelle
Ukrainian men aged between 25 and 60 are currently eligible for conscription into the Ukrainian military, and since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has maintained a travel ban on Ukrainian men between 18 to 60 years of age, regardless of whether or not they are eligible for conscription, preventing them from leaving the country. The conscription policy has grown contentious in Ukraine, as the death toll grows and the reality of a war entering its third year with no end in sight becomes clearer. To appease critics, President Zelenskyy lifted the travel ban for 18- to 22-year-olds in September, in the hope that they would choose to remain in the country, study, instead of fleeing abroad never to return.
During the interview, Ustynenko, who was on the verge of tears, was adamant that he was willing to pay whatever cost it would take to defeat Russia, but that the U.S. and its allies must keep the promises made to Ukraine. “I know one fact: The U.S. promised to help us, and now, something is missing,” he said, referring to Trump’s decision to pause U.S. military aid to Ukraine in March.
Natalia, 54, who is from Kharkiv, a city located on the frontlines of the conflict in the East, said, “We need protection, military protection, not just humanitarian aid, not just sympathy.”
Natalia, 54, visited Kyiv’s Independence Square from Kharkiv.
Elina, 52, who lives on the outskirts of Kyiv, which is subject to more frequent bombardment than the city center, said during an interview with Truthout, “All those speeches by Trump, they’re a bit strange, absolutely strange. Because it seems like his decisions depend on where he had lunch or dinner. And that’s very sad, honestly. It’s very painful.”
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, at least 6.9 million Ukrainians have been externally displaced by the fighting, fleeing to neighboring countries such as Romania and Moldova, and 3.7 remain internally displaced, forced to flee their homes in the Eastern provinces due to the heavy fighting. According to UN estimates, the war has also claimed the lives of thousands of civilians, and injured many more.
The war continues to drag on, but as Natalia said, “We are hard-working people, and we have the vision to protect our country.”
A woman searches for a place to put the portrait of a loved one who was killed during the fighting. Theia Chatelle
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