A young man attempts to escape Russian-occupied Ukraine — then he goes silent

The Kherson region of Ukraine has been under control of the Russian forces since the early days of the invasion. (AP)

Back in early February, I traveled to southern Ukraine with a team from NPR, where we met a 22-year-old Ukrainian college student who spoke nearly perfect English.

His name is Vitaliy — we're not using his last name for his safety — and he told us how nervous he was getting about a Russian invasion, especially as troops gathered in Crimea just miles away.