War in Ukraine

Dispatch from Ukraine: ‘We need more guns, more missiles. We have no choice, we must win’

While most residents around Mykolaiv have fled, some have ignored an order to evacuate: either they didn’t have the money to go, or they didn’t have the energy. Others just didn’t want to leave

Mill, the founder of Ukraine Rescue Mission, stands amid the remains of farm buildings destroyed by a downed Russian fighter jet on the outskirts of the city of Mykolaiv. All picttures: Phil Wilson

Svetlana Albeshenko strapped an assault weapon across her chest in the garage which she and her husband, Ura, have turned into a bunker for themselves and their two daughters.

“At first I thought I was going to flee Ukraine, but not now,” the 33-year-old said. “I am staying because I believe in my country.”

The garage stands down a potholed road on the outskirts of Mykolaiv, 130 kilometres north east of Odesa, and just 20 ...