Southern Ukraine in November is a grey mass of brown, barren-looking farmland. The bright greens and yellows of the fields have faded and the snow has not yet fallen. But the upbeat mood in the small town of Snihurivka was in stark contrast to the season.
Around the town’s bombed-out buildings, the mountains of rubbish left by Russian soldiers and streets littered with shrapnel marks, groups of smiling, happy residents gathered together to chat. When cars drove past, they waved and smiled. They described feelings of ecstasy upon seeing Ukrainian troops and debated the most apt insults for the Russian soldiers: should it be “pigs” or “beasts”, they asked each other.
