KATHMANDU, Nepal—About two months before a mortar killed him, 19-year-old Ukrainian soldier Daniel Kasyanenko smoked a cigarette with me in a trench in eastern Ukraine.
On that hot June afternoon, with random sniper potshots and artillery rounds comprising the background din, our conversation touched on many topics, most of which are not fit for print. But we also talked about freedom, and Kasyanenko explained to me why he had volunteered to go to war.
“We are fighting for our home and for our land,” Kasyanenko told me as we puffed on Marlboro reds. “Ukraine is a free country, and when Russia invaded I had no other choice. I had to fight.”
Ukraine is a free country, and when Russia invaded I had no other choice. I had to fight.
, 19-year-old Ukrainian soldier, now deceased
