Original subtitles

'It's been one year.

'A year of nights that never end.

'Of smoke that never clears.

'When everyone reached beyond their limits just to survive.'

You don't think about feelings.

You just do your work,

you just do anything to be alive.

'Every Ukrainian has their story of the war...'

'..and what they've lost.'

'12 months on, and still the missiles fall.

'Beyond the destroyed buildings,

'how have the people endured?'

We flew day and night.

We had no time to eat,

we didn't know what day of the week is it today.

'How has this war shaped their lives?

'And how are they coping with their new reality

'after a year that changed everything?'

'Sleigh Ride'

'Almost a year ago,

'Sonia Kudrin was told by doctors

'that she may never be able to walk again.'

'And yet here she is, persevering after tragedy.'

'They were a family who loved the outdoors.'

'Sonia's parents, Anton and Svitlana, were both vets.'

'The siblings were close.

'Sonia, her ten-year-old sister, Polina,

'and five-year-old brother, Samen.'

'Two days after the invasion, Sonia's family tried to escape.

'But as they drove away from the capital,

'Russian troops opened fire.

'Sonia's parents, sister and brother

'would all lose their lives.'

'Wherever you look in this vast country,

'there is trauma, and there is tragedy.

'People whose paths through life were torn and twisted

'by the despot next door.'

I panicked a lot, especially at night.

'For 12 months, I've been reporting on the conflict.

'Its causes, its consequences.

'We knew that something was coming.

'And yet the invasion on the 24th of February...

'..still shocked everyone.

'The scale, the brutality.

'Within days, Russian troops were on the outskirts of the capital.

'I was in Kyiv and witnessed the first gun battles at this bridge.'

Watch your back. Watch...

Feels weird to be back on this river bank

because when we were last here

with Russian soldiers in the middle of the city,

it seemed like their victory was not only inevitable,

but perhaps imminent, too.

And yet, 12 months on,

the Ukrainians have surprised us all.

'Today, as parts of the country still suffer daily bombardment,

'others look like life is back to normal.

'Except this isn't normal.

'Not when even the towns that look like they're being spared

'from Putin's very worst

'are living under the cloud of constant missile threats,

'and the memories of the early fighting still hang in the air.

'For many, it's taken a year

'just to begin to process what they've witnessed.'

Doctor.

Hello.

Good to see you. Nice to see you.

How are you? I'm fine. Where is your hat?

It's winter in Ukraine!

'Yelizar is a doctor living in Kyiv,

'who has seen some of the worst of this war.'

These are the sirens that have just started going off.

How often do you hear these?

Very often.

Sometimes, almost all the day, all the night.

I saw a rocket... "Shwoo-boof."

Really? Really, I saw this.

And a few months ago,

we would see people running into shelters, but now?

Do you see we're running?

These sirens, we're afraid, these bombs, these rockets,

but we have to live.

How has this year changed the person you are?

I make myself stronger.

I am better like a doctor

because I saw many deaths,

I helped hundreds of people,

but inside, in my soul...

they destroyed it forever.

'Before the war, Yelizar and his wife, Valeria,

'were working as doctors almost 500 miles away

'in the coastal city of Mariupol.'

I just remember all these great days when I lived in this city.

It was the city of development.

New parks, new roads, new hospitals.

I remember this city when it was so beautiful.

It was a pleasure for me and for my family.

From the first day...

I saw panic.

Panic, all the citizens, they panic.

When I travelled from one hospital to another hospital,

I saw so many destroyed buildings...

..and so many dead people.

Bodies everywhere? Everywhere.

'In the first few weeks of the war, Mariupol was almost obliterated.

'Not even the maternity hospital was spared by Russian missiles.'

When you're in the epicentre of this...

..you don't think about feelings.

You just do your work,

you just do anything to be alive.

I could see thousands of people, they need our help,

and we came,

and help, help, treat, treat, help,

without stopping. Non-stop.

It's three weeks like one day.

One bad, very bad day.

'Cameras at the time captured Yelizar and others

'trying in vain to save the life of a six-year-old girl.'

We tried to give her a life.

But we can't. We can't do this.

I cried until...

..hours.

It's difficult to me.

It's my own tragedy in my life.

One of the biggest tragedies in my life.

Sometimes, like now, I remember and...

..I want to cry.

'The Ukrainian government estimates

'that at least 95% of Mariupol

'has been destroyed.

'After three weeks, Yelizar and his family fled.

'I spoke to him not long afterwards.

'I could see back then,

'he was still trying to comprehend what he'd been through.'

I go, went away from this Mariupol

only when I cannot help people.

I saw my dead friends,

I saw dead child, dead children.

I tried to help them, but...

they killed them.

For what?

'He has relocated to work at a hospital in Kyiv.

'But Yelizar's life has been hit by more upheaval.

'He has received a conscription letter from the army.'

Yes, I'm really afraid,

but I think it's normal to be afraid of this where I'm not a soldier.

It's another world. It's really another world.

'He could be called up to the front line as a medic

'in two weeks' time.'

What is it like, raising a child during an invasion?

My daughter, she had to hide under the floor

when we heard explosions or airplanes.

She started to cry, and I said,

"Don't cry, my daughter. It's OK. Daddy near you."

That's why I, and all Ukrainian people,

we hate these bastards.

Russian bastards.

Because I had to explain to my daughter that,

"We hide in here because Russian terrorist attacks us."

'For Yelizar, and for many Ukrainians,

'what hurts so much is not just what's happened,

'but who's responsible.

'The Russians living next door.

'Putin's invasion has split families living across the border.

'It's pitched neighbour against neighbour.

'For Yelizar, it's not easy to forgive or forget.'

'The invasion has triggered hate and horror,

'and it's driven many away from the country they love

'to find new lives abroad.'

'In this war,

'it's not just their homes or their communities

'that people have been forced to abandon.

'It's their entire lives.

'We hear a lot about the plucky resilience of Ukrainians,

'but don't be deceived.

'No-one here is just dusting themselves down

'and getting on with life.

'It's estimated that over 14 million people

'have been displaced by the conflict.'

'Some have had no choice but to leave Ukraine.'

'This is home now for Jhanna and her eight-year-old daughter, Sofia.'

'They're refugees living in Brandenburg in Germany.

'Before the war, Jhanna, a former nurse,

'was living in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson.'

'We first spoke to Jhanna through video diaries

'at the start of the war.

'As the bombs fell, she took matters into her own hands.'

'After a week of fighting, Russia took control of Kherson.'

'After three months living under Russian occupation,

'Jhanna and Sofia, mother and daughter, decided to leave.

'Over the course of a week,

'Jhanna and Sofia escaped via Russian-held Crimea,

'getting to Georgia, then Turkey,

'before claiming asylum in Germany.'

'In November, circumstances changed in southern Ukraine.'

'The Ukrainian Armed Forces fought back and recaptured Kherson.'

'I was there as the city was liberated.'

Forever, Kherson is Ukraine.

'But the shelling has not stopped.

'And nor have Jhanna's fears for her parents.'

'These few words, written in a letter,

'are the only proof Tetiana has that her son, Vlad, is still alive.'

Tetiana, hello.

'She's one of many mothers in this war living without certainty.'

'Somewhere in Russia, Tetiana's 30-year-old son, Vlad,

'is a prisoner of war.

'One of hundreds of civilians in this conflict...

'captured and taken out of the country.'

'It was in April last year that everything changed for Tetiana.

'Russian forces were beginning to retreat across Ukraine.

'And in their wake came chilling discoveries.'

'In one city I visited, Bucha,

'the true barbarity of the invasion was being uncovered.'

'Mass graves containing nearly 500 bodies were discovered.

'Almost all showed signs of torture or violent trauma.

'We first met Tetiana in the town centre.

'She was searching for answers about her missing son.

'She took us back to the spot where neighbours had last seen him,

'lying on the ground.

'He'd been shot in the leg.'

'In May, a glimmer of hope.

'A prisoner of war released by the Russians

'contacted Tetiana to say he'd heard Vlad's name being read out

'during a prison roll call.'

How did you feel to hear that he was alive?

'And in September came the letter,

'written in her son's distinctive handwriting,

'confirming he was still in a Russian prison.

'But since then, Tetiana has heard nothing.'

Do you think you will see your son again?

'For now, there is only the wait.

'And Tetiana's daily fears over what life is like for her son.'

'Once a pretty commuter town,

'Bucha has become a byword for Russian brutality.

'In a conflict where almost 60,000 alleged war crimes

'have so far been reported to the Ukrainian government.

'And while Tetiana still has hope,

'a path towards the greatest relief imaginable,

'for many others, there is only grief.'

'Yulia is one of many young widows in this war.'

'Her husband, Oleksandr, was a car mechanic, a family man

'and a patriot who signed up to defend his country.

'On the first day of the invasion,

'he got Yulia and their daughters to safety

'whilst he stayed behind to fight.'

'But during the battle for Bucha,

'Oleksandr was shot and taken to hospital.'

'Oleksandr died from his wounds in hospital.

'Yulia identified his body amongst those found in a mass grave.'

'To assess why a war,

'which was meant to last a few days, is still rambling on,

'you can look at a million maps or listen to the military jargon.

'But maybe the most important explanation is spirit -

'the simple refusal of Ukrainians to accept defeat.

'Hostomel, on the outskirts of Kyiv,

'was considered to be a gateway to the capital.'

'The airport changed hands many times in a bloody battle.

'Five weeks after the invasion, Russian troops eventually retreated,

'leaving scenes of destruction in their wake,

'including this -

'what was once the largest cargo aircraft in the world,

'called Mriya, Ukrainian for "dream".

'The return of this airport to Ukrainian hands is testament

'to the defiance of so many people I've met here.

'I'm heading 140 miles east of Kyiv

'to meet a man who's been part of Ukraine's brave resistance.'

We understood the importance of defending our capital.

Russian aircraft, they flew to attack Kyiv

and areas around Kyiv, and we had to prevent these attacks.

We flew day and night, and again, day, and again, night.

We didn't know what date is it today,

what day of the week is it today.

Maybe it's Monday, maybe it's Saturday -

we didn't know.

'Oleksii graduated from military training

'only a few months before the war began.

'He lost many comrades from his brigade

'in the initial skirmishes of the war...

'..including his mentor, Stepan,

'a commander who had become a close friend

'after training Oleksii in combat.'

The most dramatic what I saw in this war,

it was shutting down one of my comrades on our eyes.

Yeah? Yeah, we saw,

like, his aircraft shooted on the ground,

and he was full in fire,

and he couldn't eject from that aircraft.

I tried to keep calm,

to keep my emotions only inside me because...

it could be...

It could be more difficult for us to take some missions.

We didn't have, really, any time

because a lot of flights, a lot of tasks,

and we didn't have any time

to concentrate on death of our mates.

How does your family feel about what you do?

My wife, she's worry about me too much.

My mum, she's worry too much, my dad.

And I try to keep in secret when I come for some missions

because my family will worry about me

when I'm in the air.

So, you have a daughter? Yeah.

Yeah, she's two years old.

Yeah.

I hope she will not know

that war is coming in our country,

and she will only read about it in books

or some videos and so on.

'All Ukrainians are fighting a battle of their own in this war.

'From families at home, to those on the front line

'up to the top of those leading the fight.'

Mr Mayor!

Good to see you. Good to see you. How are you?

'Kyiv's mayor, Vitali Klitschko,

'has felt the weight of battle since it began.

'I've met with him throughout this war,

'and he has never shown signs of relenting.'

I am, as mayor, talk to you and to talk to everyone.

Never ever Russians to come to our city.

Better we die.

Tell me what was the lowest moment during that year for you?

What was the worst moment? Worst moment?

To see how children cry,

and you can't help them, and...

The worst moment, I was in second week of the war

in our main train station,

and one small guy crying there.

I come to him and tell him, "Please, don't cry!"

I tried to give him good mood.

"Don't cry. Everything will be fine. Give five."

One woman come to me and told, "I'm following this child,

"and we are not allowed to tell him the parents...

"already died, he's alone."

It was difficult. This was most difficult part.

'Klitschko's role in Kyiv has been forced to adapt.

'A decade ago, he was better known as a heavyweight boxing champion,

'alongside his brother, Wladimir.

'Now they are wartime leaders.

'It's a job he never signed up to, but one he's taking on.'

As sportsmen, you are responsible by yourself, by your team,

but in this moment,

you're responsible for millions of people.

Lives of millions of people, citizens.

And they looking at you, and they expect protection.

They expect support.

It's our home country. It's our homes.

We don't want to be back to past time.

Don't want to be back to USSR.

We see our future as part of European family,

and we fighting for our future

and defending future of our children.

'Ukraine has an old history, but it's a new country.

'Its kids are having to grow up quickly,

'but how will its young war generation cope?

'Over 1,300 Ukrainian children are estimated

'to have lost their parents in this conflict.

'Following the tragedy that saw her lose her parents and siblings,

'Sonia would have surgery to remove a bullet from her spine.

'She and her grandmother were then flown to Rome

'by the charity Mother And Child for further treatment.

'Barely able to move her toes at first,

'she has made remarkable progress.'

'In the past year,

'I've seen characters changing all around me.

'People finding that the things that used to bother them

'suddenly seem so small.'

'The bombs keep falling. The front lines keep shifting.

'War goes on, but so must life.

'That means putting things on hold

'or perhaps finding a new gear.

'It's been 12 months of doing whatever it takes

'because in Ukraine, everything is at stake.'