Ukrainian soldier’s family endures front-line combat and distant missile threats
A Ukrainian artilleryman’s wife and their two daughters live in Boryspil while he serves on the front in Donetsk, facing both battlefield danger and increasing missile attacks on their city.
Yevheniy Borysenko, a 35-year-old artilleryman in the 43rd Separate Artillery Brigade, is stationed in the heavily contested Donetsk region, where Russian forces continue their push. His wife Alina and their two daughters—Snizhana, two, and Yelyzaveta, 11—live in Boryspil, southeast of Kyiv, and see him only during short home-leave periods. The couple met on a dating site in 2023 and married months later; Snizhana was born in early 2024.
Recent Russian drone and missile raids have struck apartments near their home, underscoring the growing danger far from the front. Alina says the constant threat makes each reunion fleeting and stressful, while Yevheniy worries about his family’s safety during attacks. The story illustrates how Ukraine’s war separates families and expands civilian risk beyond the battlefield.
Why it matters
It shows how the war’s front-line fighting and nationwide attacks disrupt everyday family life across Ukraine.
How this story developed
- Sep 11 Ukraine expands use of unmanned ground robots on the front lines
- Sep 20 The robots have been observed along the entire 1,200‑kilometre front.
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