logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2022
32m 18s

Fleeing the Call Up

BBC News
About this episode

Men flee conscription into the army as referendums start in Russian occupied Ukraine.

Victoria and Vitaliy take stock of an eventful week in the Ukraine war with Samantha De Bendern, a former NATO adviser and political risk consultant and former BBC Moscow correspondent, Daniel Sandford.

And Vitaliy talks to Yulia Rubanova a violinist with the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra about her early life in Mariupol, her fears for her parents who were stranded there during Russian bombardment and how incredible it felt to play with her fellow countrymen on a world tour.

Today’s episode was produced by Clare Williamson, Ivana Davidovic and Arsenii Sokolov. The planning producer is Louise Hidalgo. The editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.

Email Ukrainecast@bbc.co.uk with your questions and comments. You can also send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram to +44 330 1239480

Up next
Yesterday
Q&A: Proxy wars, drone walls, and Russian supply lines
How might Russia respond to the potential delivery of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine? What can Europe do to win round Hungary's Viktor Orbán? And what would a drone wall to protect Europe actually look like?To answer your questions, Jamie and Vitaly are joined by Ukraine correspond ... Show More
30m 37s
Oct 7
Is Russia using my childhood home as a military base?
Vitaly’s home village of Verkhnya Krynytsya in the Zaporizhzhia region was occupied by Russia shortly after the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Now, in a Ukrainecast exclusive, he tells Victoria why it’s likely his childhood home is being used as a base by the ... Show More
20m 5s
Oct 2
Q&A: Russia's veto power, Nato's Article 5, and Putin's succession plan
Is Ukraine seeing an exodus of young men? Why does Russia have veto power over UN resolutions? And would Moscow defend Minsk if Nato allies invoked Article 5 in response to an attack by Belarus?To answer your questions, Lucy Hockings is joined by senior digital journalist Laura G ... Show More
29m 38s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2022
Russia seizes Ukraine nuclear plant
Russian military shelling started a fire at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine overnight. That’s according to Ukrainian officials. The fire is out and the nuclear plant appears safe, but Russian forces are now in control of the facility. In an emotional earl ... Show More
10m 51s
Oct 2022
Strikes Across Ukraine
Russian missiles hit Ukrainian cities as Putin threatens "harsh" action.We get the latest on Monday’s deadly blasts with the BBC’s International Editor, Jeremy Bowen, and Ukrainecast host, Vitaliy Shevchenko. They discuss President Putin’s motivation, the risk of further "escalat ... Show More
32m 28s
Feb 2022
Ukrainecast: The Battle for Kyiv
Ukraine government gives out guns as Russian forces approach... Victoria, Gabriel and Vitaliy talk through how the conflict has unfolded. Olga Malchevska, from the BBC Ukrainian Service in London, tells of how her family home was targeted, and Newsnight’s diplomatic editor Mark U ... Show More
34m 34s
Apr 2024
Ep.526: Un vero pacifista russo
Alexander Demidenko è un signore di 61 anni che nel tempo libero ha sempre fatto il volontario. Vive con la moglie Natalia a Belgorod, la città russa vicina al confine con l’Ucraina. E da due anni aiuta gli ucraini che sono scappati dall’occupazione o che sono stati deportati in ... Show More
9m 27s
Mar 2022
Kyiv residents face a choice: stay or go
As Russian forces continue to attack, more than half a million Ukranians have left the country. But for those who have decided to stay, life is very different than it was just a week ago. Plus, what’s at stake for President Biden in tonight’s State of the Union. And, more than ha ... Show More
11m 12s
Feb 2022
Ukrainecast: Nuclear Reaction
Putin moves Russia's nuclear forces to "special alert”, in response to what he described as “aggression” from Nato countries. Meanwhile as fighting continues in the streets across Ukraine’s biggest cities, President Zelensky says his delegation will meet with Russia at the Belaru ... Show More
39m 7s
Mar 2022
Biden's message of national and global unity
President Biden delivered his first State of the Union address last night, while the refugee crisis out of Ukraine continued to grow and Russian forces bombed the country’s two largest cities. Biden's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin was clear: "When the history of thi ... Show More
11m 6s
Feb 2023
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – one year later; Moldova in Russia's crosshairs; the earthquake in Syria – a disaster on top of a disaster
Guest anchor Bianna Golodryga speaks with Tikhon Dzyadko and Ekaterina Kotrikadze of TV Rain, the exiled Russian TV network, about how Russians are reacting to Putin's war. Then CNA Russia Studies Program Director Michael Kofman and War on the Rocks founder Ryan Evans discuss the ... Show More
41m 12s
Mar 2022
After Ten Days Of War, The View From The Ground In Ukraine
Ukraine continues to hold out against a Russian invasion, as the U.S. and its European allies debate military aid and banning Russian oil imports to further constrain the petrostate's economy. NPR's Ryan Lucas is reporting from Ukraine and shares how the people there are experien ... Show More
14m 26s
Mar 2022
Ukraine's Foreign Legion
When President Zelensky put a call out for fighters to join the defence of Ukraine against the Russian assault, an estimated 20,000 answered - including Shane Matthew, a former member of the British Army. As we mark a month since the start of the war in Ukraine, what is life like ... Show More
27m 58s