KYIV - Mr Oleksii Tilnenko hoped this would be the year Ukraine drove Russian forces out of swathes of occupied land. As 2023 draws to a close, his southern home town of Kherson is still being pounded by shelling and the front line has barely budged.
Mr Tilnenko, who fled Kherson in 2022 and lives in Kyiv where he helps internally displaced people, believes Russia is racing to rebuild its much larger armed forces to step up its war effort.
"The hope is the West can somehow mobilise, somehow fire up its defence industry to renew equipment and produce what's needed to defend our ordinary citizens," said the 36-year-old.
More than 21 months into the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II, fighting rages with no end in sight, and neither side has landed a telling blow on the battlefield.
Ukrainian soldiers, living in freezing trenches, acknowledge they are exhausted going into a second winter of full-scale war with a resource-rich, nuclear-armed superpower that has more than triple Ukraine's population.
Ukrainians know they must secure Western military aid to carry on - and that it will be harder with the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza distracting global attention.
Denne historien er fra December 07, 2023-utgaven av The Straits Times.
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Denne historien er fra December 07, 2023-utgaven av The Straits Times.
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VERDY'S APPROACH AN EYE-OPENER
Former Lions turned coaches Alam Shah and Isa inspired by stint with Japanese club
Lions' morale-boosting win comes at a price
The Lions got a much-needed morale booster ahead of the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Championship as they beat Tokyo Verdy 2-1 on Oct 11 in the second of three friendlies against J1 League opponents in their Japan training tour.
Conditions to blame for 'ugly' draw, says Messi
Argentina were held to a 1-1 draw by Venezuela on Lionel Messi's return, as Brazil got their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign back on track with a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Chile on Oct 10.
Belgium punish Italy at set pieces in 2-2 draw
Italy coach Luciano Spalletti blamed bad luck, as Belgium bounced back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with his 10-man side in Rome on Oct 10 to boost their hopes of reaching the Nations League quarter-finals.
CARSLEY'S MIDFIELD OVERLOAD BACKFIRES
England temp boss dismayed by mistakes as Three Lions lose to Greece for first time
Player strike in England unlikely: Sports law expert
The chorus of frustrated players and managers speaking out against football's gruelling fixture schedule continues to grow, with Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate the latest to say he would support players' right to strike.
SOCCEROOS HAVE NO FEAR
They head to Japan with confidence despite never having beaten the Samurai Blue there
Toyota back in F1 with Haas tie-up
The United States-owned Haas Formula One team and Toyota announced a multi-year technical partnership on Oct 11, in a move bringing Japan's biggest carmaker back to grand prix racing for the first time since 2009.
SABALENKA TO STICK TO HER BRAVE PLAN
World No. 2 will be aggressive in Wuhan semi against Gauff; Fritz takes on Djokovic
Nadal's beauty lay in his purity as a competitor
To appreciate the retiring Rafael Nadal we can flip through record books, hunt down Uncle Toni, sift the clay for archaeological clues, speak to Roger Federer's therapist, delve into the physics of spin, but really it's best if we start with a dictionary.
