- Published
Every morning Igor Smelyansky looks at a vast map of Ukraine on his office wall and decides where he should put his people in harm's way.
asserted
he → publish → way
His aides provide him with live intelligence about Russian attacks and he deploys his teams, balancing their potential operational success against risk to life or limb.
asserted
he → provide → life
And every day he must decide how far to send his postmen and women into the deadly "kill zone" along the front lines where the threat of drone attack is ever present.
asserted
threat → decide → attack
"If it's too dangerous to go today, we won't go," Smelyansky told us.
asserted
Smelyansky → go → us
"We'll go tomorrow, or we'll go somewhere else.
asserted
we → go → ?
Ukrposhta does more than just collect letters and parcels.
asserted
Ukrposhta → do → letters
It pays out pensions in hard cash, it takes payment for utility bills.
asserted
it → pay → bills
And it delivers vital food and medicine to people on the margins of society.
asserted
it → deliver → society
As such, it offers a lifeline to millions of poor and elderly Ukrainians living in remote villages where shops are rare and trips to the city are expensive and dangerous.
asserted
trips → offer → city
In a vast rural nation wracked by war, Ukrposhta is part of the glue that holds the country together.
asserted
that → wrack → country
That has made the service a target for Russia - which in recent months has stepped up not only its attacks on postmen and women but also sorting offices and logistical hubs.
asserted
which → make → postmen
The Kremlin has claimed strikes like this are retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on Russian online retailers like Wildberries.
asserted
strikes → claim → Wildberries
Speaking in his imposing Soviet-era office building that overlooks Kyiv's famous Maidan square, Smelyansky said: "If we don't go [to a village], we don't have basic supply.
asserted
we → speak → supply
We don't have food.
asserted
We → have → food
We don't have medicine.
asserted
We → have → medicine
People will struggle.
asserted
People → struggle → ?
If we do go, they may delay a decision to evacuate from the areas they probably should have evacuated.
uncertain
they → go → areas
If a post van turns up unannounced, a crowd can form, creating a target for an opportunistic Russian drone operator.
asserted
crowd → turn → operator
But if they call ahead, information could leak.
uncertain
information → call → ?
"Is it a danger?" Smelyansky said.
asserted
Smelyansky → say → ?
Because there are Russian sympathisers who can give them the location of the truck that's coming."
asserted
that → be → truck
By attacking Ukrposhta, you put pressure on people… who are depending on the truck coming in
asserted
who → attack → truck
If Smelyansky chooses not to send a van in, he faces criticism.
asserted
he → choose → criticism
"You get messages from people from those villages: 'You betrayed us.
asserted
You → get → us
You didn't come...'
asserted
You → come → ?
But if I go, I may risk the life of the driver."
Smelyansky says Russia is deliberately targeting his staff because of the vital role they play shoring up Ukraine's resilience, helping people stay alive in their homes through the fighting and bitter winters.
uncertain
people → go → fighting
"It's not an accident, it's deliberate," he said.
asserted
he → say → ?
"By attacking Ukrposhta, you put pressure on people… who are depending on the truck coming in."
asserted
who → attack → truck
Russia denies targeting civilians
asserted
Russia → target → civilians
Since 2022, hundreds of Ukrposhta branches and vehicles have been hit, and more than 50 staff have lost their lives, either on the frontline or on their rounds, according to Ukrposhta.
uncertain
staff → hit → Ukrposhta
We travelled with Kateryna Marynych, a 38-year-old postmistress, near Zaporizhzhia - a city not too far from the southern frontlines.
asserted
We → travel → frontlines
She lost her home and her husband during the full-scale invasion, and came to the area to rebuild her life.
asserted
She → lose → life
She ran the post office in the village of Lukasheve for two years until it was destroyed in March by a Russian drone, targeting soldiers working nearby.
asserted
it → run → soldiers
After her van drew up, a steady queue of elderly folk formed.
asserted
queue → draw → folk
She sat in the front passenger seat, window open, handing out cash, taking payments.
asserted
window → sit → payments
One customer, Nadiia, said she was grateful: "It's a long way for us to travel to Zaporizhzhia.
asserted
us → say → Zaporizhzhia
The fact that they come here is really nice."
asserted
they → come → ?
Oleksandrivna, 77, arrived wearing a purple dressing gown, walking with a crutch.
asserted
Oleksandrivna → arrive → crutch
When I asked her where she would be without Kateryna, she replied: "We would be stuffed!
asserted
We → ask → Kateryna
Where could I go for my medicine?"
uncertain
I → go → medicine
…and 19 more, not listed.
The Aporia
