After 2 years of war in Ukraine, 6 cities hold out hope under fire
CITIES ACROSS UKRAINE — Russia's military assault on Ukraine began a decade ago, when it occupied the southern peninsula of Crimea. A bloody invasion of eastern Ukraine, which involved active-duty Russian troops, the West says, followed.
Two years ago, that localized conflict gave way to a full-scale invasion by Russia's armed forces that has shaken every corner of Ukraine.
On this grim anniversary, NPR visited people in six Ukrainian cities who have adapted, each in their own way, to war — and maintained a sense of hope.
Odesa
Artem Vasyuta offers tours of his legendary hometown even during war.
"My official title is tour guide, but I do this job because I want to tell Odesa's story," he says, pausing. "A story that includes Ukrainians."
Located on Ukraine's southern coast, Odesa is known as the Pearl of the Black Sea. Its port used to be a heady, multicultural crossroad where the dominant language was Russian. But Russia's full-scale war on Ukraine all but shut down the port and its exports. And two years later, Odesa has lost all sentimentality for anything related to Russia.
In December 2022, locals took down an enormous statue of Catherine the Great, the Russian empress credited (unfairly, many Ukrainians say) as the city's founder.
