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Ukrainian soldiers speak and whisper as they walk through ice and mud in their trenches, staying low as they cross the most vulnerable parts, warning signs of sniper activity.
Nothing has changed here in years.
Daily exchanges with Russian-backed separatists, as confirmed by Ukrainians, professional Russian soldiers, continue.
Their biggest fear is Russian drones equipped with thermal imaging cameras. They can hear it above – when the sound stops, mortars and grenades start.
Photo: Sean Penner (left) and Johnny Wood, both from England, say they have started a new life in Ukraine
We are the brigade with the guards of the southern section of the front line of the Ukrainian army with the separatists in the east of the country, near the town of Pavlopil.
Among their ranks are two professionally contract soldiers, foreign fighters who have joined their ranks.
Unusually, Johnny Wood and Sean Penner are from England. They both say they started a new life here – which is why they fight.
Sean Penner was working in waste management in England when he decided he couldn’t work 16 hours a day and long commutes on the M25 motorway anymore.
Therefore, he says he decided to change his life and, with his military background in mind, joined the Ukrainian army.
“I had a skill set with the Royal English Regiment in the British Army for nine years, and the laws here changed. They allowed foreigners to join the army, and once that was established, I could grant three years here, and then get permanent residence or citizenship.”
Photo: Sean was promoted to Division Leader in his unit just six months after he joined
Sean was promoted to division commander of his unit just six months after he joined.
It took him some time to gain the trust of his fellow soldiers, but now he considers himself one of them – most importantly, they consider him one of them.
“The first year was a little bit simple because they don’t know what to do with it, it’s so new, this is new, why would the British want to come here and do it? But now I’m three years with the Marines,” he explained.
This is Shawn’s fourth round of duty in Ukraine. He speaks a little Russian and is married to a Ukrainian. Their family home is only 15 kilometers (nine miles) from the front line – he tells me he can hear the bombing from his front room when he’s home.
“My home city is Mariupol, so for all intents and purposes I am now defending my adoptive city and my family.”
I asked him what this defense would look like if a large-scale Russian invasion had taken place.
0:55 On the frozen front lines in Ukraine
Read more: 8,500 US troops could be deployed to the region
He, like many Ukrainian soldiers I have met, is realistic but defiant.
“All I know is that the players are in good shape, they’ve been drilled and they’re going to fight.
“We will all fight, because these men defend their homes, and most of the men you speak with are – really – looking to the West, and not to Russia, to move on with their lives.
“They want to go to [university]They want to go to Germany and the United States and if they are [Russia] Come across the border we are outdone.
“We don’t have air superiority, we don’t have a naval fleet – a very powerful navy – but the Ukrainians are fighting, so we’ll give them a bloody nose, that’s for sure.”
Sean’s contract expires in December, but he has no plans to return to England. He says he wants to retire from the army, live in Ukraine, and possibly move on to humanitarian work.
“It took me a long time to integrate here, so guys know I’m not a war tourist or war junkie, I’m with an organized unit, I’m with the government… I’ve merged, so they know I’m not just sitting around and I’m going home at the end of it.”
1:12 PM Ukraine warns of ‘new Chechnya’
Read more: What is happening on the Russian-Ukrainian border and where is Moscow hiding its tanks and missiles?
Johnny Wood, 28, on his third. He and Sean became good friends, often visiting each other at their frontline positions.
Like his colleague Brett, he owns a house in Ukraine and has plans to start a family.
Some people think he’s crazy to join in, Johnny says, and when they argue he shouldn’t be here, he sometimes sees their point – but in the end, he points out, his life is here now.
“This is a real argument on their part, but here I am, my fiancée is Ukrainian, I have a house in Ukraine, I am building a family.
“There will always be that person who says I shouldn’t be here, but at the end of the day if I’m not here, like my government doesn’t exist here, so that’s the best I can do by doing what my government does I can’t do.”
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The Ukrainian army has improved a lot since 2014, but nevertheless it is infinitely superior to the Russian army.
Johnny told me when I asked him what it would be like if Russia invaded Ukraine.
“I don’t think we need to send British troops or American forces, all the West needs is to support Ukraine politically.
“Like giving them the same amount of political support as we do, like stepping it up and giving them the weapons they need to defend themselves and defend their country.”
4:26 Russia and the West: What’s going on?
Read more: The West is preparing for the worst as the possibility of an impending Russian invasion grows
To the south of these frozen trenches lies the city of Cherokino on the shores of the Sea of Azov.
The international community warns that the invasion will kill thousands and destroy entire societies. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the war could resemble the Chechen wars.
Photo: Shirokino was once a thriving city but is now a frightening rubble of destroyed buildings
Shirokino cannot be the best example of what can happen here in Ukraine.
It was devastated, deserted and abandoned in 2015 as fighting and bombing intensified, making life impossible.
A once prosperous city is now a frightening wreck of destroyed buildings, silent but by the sound of wind blowing through broken windows and twisted metal creaking in the wind.
Its horrific presence is a reminder of how close we are to the brink of disaster.
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