The surrounding forests, in which trenches are concealed, stretch for dozens of kilometers around the Zaporizhzhia oblast, a region which Russia has part-occupied.

Reporting for "Aktuaalne Kaamera," the film crew took a closer look at the situation along this seven-kilometer stretch.

It is one thing just to reach these positions, and quite another to get out.

A Russian sabotage unit was situated only about a kilometer away, in the same patch of forest, and began a strike.

Immediately after this offensive began, the journalists were moved away from the immediate vicinity.

Ukrainian soldier "Sava" said: "This morning has been frenetic. The enemy tried to hit our neighboring position with a small assault group."

"There was contact with the enemy," "Sava" added.

This assault was successfully repelled, while there were no losses on the Ukrainian side.

This was just as well, as evacuating the wounded from that locale has proven very difficult.

A Ukrainian soldier with the call sign "Basik" said: "The enemy has been targeting the evacuation teams. Those who come to rescue the wounded end up getting wounded themselves."

"Basik's" colleague "Dok" uses an unusual tool, at least for a medic – a shovel.

"We are preparing new positions just in case," he said.

"They only show excavators digging trenches on the TV, but in reality, no one would take an excavator this close to the front line," "Dok" went on.

"That's why we have to dig things by hand," he added.

"Professor," another Ukrainian soldier, said: "The better we prepare, the easier it will be to hold our positions, defend against drones, and protect the lives of our soldiers."

"The deeper we dig, the greater our chances of survival," he added.

The sky was thick with drones when ERR were there. The Ukrainians do have anti-drone devices, but these don't always work as they should.

"When 'kamikaze' or reconnaissance drones fly over, our specialists try to take them down," "Lipnik" said.

"And when they can't jam their frequencies, I take them down so they don't reach as far as our positions," he went on.

Ukraine also has its own drones. Their targets are located about 10 kilometers into enemy territory.

This is Ukrainian land, which many of the soldiers are already familiar with.

Another soldier, call-sign "Hummer," said: "We flew to our favorite fishing spots, found the target, and hit it."

What "it" was was not yet clear, "Hummer" added, and said he and his comrades would be asking that very question to their commanding officer soon.

Later on, it turned out it was one of the Russians' new laser rangefinders.

These objects are defended by anti-drone systems, but that time that was no help.

"We combat anti-drone devices by switching frequencies, boosting our signal," "Hummer" explained.

"It all depends on the situation," he noted.

Amid all the struggle, there is still room for a humorous anecdote.

The last time another soldier, call-sign "Panther," was on leave in his hometown, attempts were made to "remobilize" him, an incident which his fellow soldiers chuckle over.

"A military commissariat car stopped in front of me," he recalled.

The door opened, and a soldier asked me, "Do you want to go to prison?"

"In our town, there's a prison in which the military commissariat likely has reserved spots for draft dodgers," he added.

"I answered, 'No, I don't! Are you trying to mobilize me?'" he continued, noting that the answer was in the affirmative.

"Let's go then!" were "Panther's" next words, and he got into the car, but he said it remained stationary.

"One of them looked at me and asked, 'You're probably already in the army?'," he continued the tale.

"I answered, 'Yes, I am. Does it show somehow?'"

"They replied, "Yes, you agreed too quickly," "Panther" concluded, noting that he had been on the way to the market to pick up his wife at the time.

Luckily, the story had a happy ending; as "Panther" had had to cancel an ordered taxi, the military vehicle ferried him to the market to complete his errand.

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