donetsk people’s republic
Rebel Soldiers Hold the Buffer Zone: Russian Roulette (Dispatch 109)
VICE News follows the 8th Separate Mobile Brigade, a group of pro-Russia rebel soldiers, as they hold their positions at the buffer zones in Shyrokyne. During an intense exchange of fighting, one of their fighters does not make it back alive.
Russia Denies That Its Soldiers Are in Ukraine, But We Tracked One There Using His Selfies
Russian servicemen are posting photos of their country's military intervention in Ukraine to social media, and we followed one of them to verify just how readily apparent Russia’s role in the fighting really is.
Putin's Teenage Army: Inside Donetsk's Youth Warrior Training Camps
VICE News visited a patriotic youth camp in Amvrosievka, eastern Ukraine, where children are trained in fighting with knives, hand-to-hand combat, and how to operate guns at the local school.
Beauty Amid the Chaos: The Donetsk Opera Offers Relief to a City in the Grip of War
Residents of the rebel-held city flock to the Donetsk Opera and Ballet Theater on weekends in search of respite from the reality of life within a conflict zone.
Russian Roulette (Dispatch 108)
In the latest dispatch, Simon Ostrovsky travels to western Ukraine to find out why 300 American troops have arrived there.
Russian Roulette (Dispatch 107)
In the latest dispatch, VICE News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky learns how and why an American named “Texas” ended up fighting alongside pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine.
Russian Roulette (Dispatch 106)
In the latest dispatch, Simon Ostrovsky interviews Aleksandr Zakharchenko, the leader of the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic.
In Photos: One Year Later, a Look at the Forming of the Donetsk People's Republic
The conflict in Donetsk quickly became a flashpoint for what has escalated into Ukraine's civil war, which has left thousands dead and an estimated 1.5 million displaced.
Russian Soldiers Have Given Up Pretending They Are Not Fighting in Ukraine
Russian officials including President Vladimir Putin have repeatedly denied that their soldiers are in Ukraine, arguing that the Russians who are fighting there are all volunteers.
Secret Protestant Churches in Donetsk: Ukraine's Religious War
In Donetsk, Protestants are being persecuted by Russian Orthodox separatists, forced to conduct their Sunday services in secret. VICE News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky investigates.
Volunteer Soldiers Fighting in Ukraine: Russian Roulette (Dispatch 102)
VICE News traveled to eastern Ukraine to meet volunteer fighters from Spain, Brazil, Serbia, and France, to find out what inspired them to take up arms and risk their lives on front lines with the DNR.
Russian Roulette (Dispatch 98)
In the latest dispatch from Ukraine, VICE News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky attends a beauty pageant for the female fighting contingent of the DNR.