Ukraine's Home-Front Helpers
- By RFE/RL
Throughout the Russian invasion, Ukrainian civilians have been volunteering and working to make vital hardware for their country’s war effort.
![Kyiv locals make candles on October 30 for use in the trenches.](https://gdb.rferl.org/05a80000-0aff-0242-8e49-08dabdaff533_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Kyiv locals make candles on October 30 for use in the trenches.
![Sources of light on the front lines are becoming increasingly valuable amid Russian strikes targeting Ukraine’s critical infrastructure as the nights get longer during the winter months.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-ce95-08dabdaff2c9_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Sources of light on the front lines are becoming increasingly valuable amid Russian strikes targeting Ukraine’s critical infrastructure as the nights get longer during the winter months.
![Workers with newly assembled buggies that were designed and made in a workshop in Kryviy Rih, central Ukraine, in September.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-4061-08dabdafef0b_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Workers with newly assembled buggies that were designed and made in a workshop in Kryviy Rih, central Ukraine, in September.
![Buggies are prized on the battlefield for the open design that offers easy mounting and dismounting for fighters, a nearly unobstructed field of fire, and the vehicles’ ability to turn tight circles when a fast retreat is needed.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-8732-08dabdaff0ec_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Buggies are prized on the battlefield for the open design that offers easy mounting and dismounting for fighters, a nearly unobstructed field of fire, and the vehicles’ ability to turn tight circles when a fast retreat is needed.
![Blacksmith Anton Zaika shows off a newly made stove in his workshop in Sumy in August. The wood-burning stoves were designed by the 32-year-old specifically for use in the trenches as a source of warmth and as a cooking device.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-25ee-08dabdafe4cc_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Blacksmith Anton Zaika shows off a newly made stove in his workshop in Sumy in August. The wood-burning stoves were designed by the 32-year-old specifically for use in the trenches as a source of warmth and as a cooking device.
![A volunteer weaves camouflage netting inside a bomb shelter in Kyiv in April. The netting is used by both sides to hide vehicles and troops from drone cameras.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-c77a-08dabdafde7c_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A volunteer weaves camouflage netting inside a bomb shelter in Kyiv in April. The netting is used by both sides to hide vehicles and troops from drone cameras.
![Handmade camouflage netting laid out in a courtyard in Lviv in September. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/05a80000-0aff-0242-9894-08dabdafeb47_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Handmade camouflage netting laid out in a courtyard in Lviv in September.
![Volunteers in Kyiv in June pack plant-based products that will be sent to vegan front-line soldiers.](https://gdb.rferl.org/001a0000-0aff-0242-6d79-08dabdafe377_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Volunteers in Kyiv in June pack plant-based products that will be sent to vegan front-line soldiers.
![Andriy Paliy prepares materials that he uses to produce armor plates at his workshop in Zaporizhzhya in May. Before the invasion, the self-taught blacksmith made swords and medieval suits of armor but now he makes ballistic protection for the Ukrainian military. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-4921-08dabdafe272_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Andriy Paliy prepares materials that he uses to produce armor plates at his workshop in Zaporizhzhya in May. Before the invasion, the self-taught blacksmith made swords and medieval suits of armor but now he makes ballistic protection for the Ukrainian military.
![Locals from Lviv construct anti-tank obstacles in March. The “Czech hedgehog” tank barriers are favored for being easy to move on and off roads. They are also able to withstand explosions -- even if blasted into the air, the barriers bounce back to earth and remain effective. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-44bf-08dabdafd2c1_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Locals from Lviv construct anti-tank obstacles in March. The “Czech hedgehog” tank barriers are favored for being easy to move on and off roads. They are also able to withstand explosions -- even if blasted into the air, the barriers bounce back to earth and remain effective.
![Ukrainian women making tactical vests in the port city of Odesa in March.](https://gdb.rferl.org/001a0000-0aff-0242-ce37-08dabdafda89_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Ukrainian women making tactical vests in the port city of Odesa in March.
![A Ukrainian man grinds the edges off an armor plate that was upcycled from the leaf spring of a vehicle's suspension system. This photo was taken in the Zakarpattya region in March.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-5d74-08dabdafdbb2_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A Ukrainian man grinds the edges off an armor plate that was upcycled from the leaf spring of a vehicle's suspension system. This photo was taken in the Zakarpattya region in March.
![A man fills sacks with sand as part of preparations for the defense of Kyiv as the Ukrainian capital was surrounded by Russian forces in early March.](https://gdb.rferl.org/001a0000-0aff-0242-5fb4-08dabdafd2d1_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A man fills sacks with sand as part of preparations for the defense of Kyiv as the Ukrainian capital was surrounded by Russian forces in early March.
![A volunteer prepares meals for soldiers and members of the territorial defense defending the eastern city of Kharkiv in March.](https://gdb.rferl.org/059c0000-0aff-0242-bba7-08dabdafdb94_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A volunteer prepares meals for soldiers and members of the territorial defense defending the eastern city of Kharkiv in March.