STORY: “This is our old position.”

“It is a bit further. Where the explosion was, just there.”

27-year-old Oleksii is a soldier in an artillery unit of the 57th Motorized Brigade.

He’s been stationed in Kupiansk, a city in the Kharkiv region that was captured by Russia in early 2022 and retaken by Ukrainians later that year.

“Shot. This is ours.”

Ukraine’s full-scale war with Russia has entered its third year.

Ukrainian military leaders openly admit that the battlefield situation on the eastern front has deteriorated.

The war has drained the country’s ammunition and manpower, and its failed counter-offensive last year sank morale.

In April, Reuters traveled along the eastern stretch of Ukraine’s 1,000-kilometer frontline.

We spoke to soldiers in infantry, artillery and drone units.

All expressed exhaustion.

They described an acute shortage of ammunition and an urgent need to replenish troops.

Meanwhile Russia has continued to batter Ukraine with seemingly endless resources.

After securing his fifth term, President Vladimir Putin has also redoubled his war effort.

And Russian forces have made steady advances in recent months.

The Ukrainian armed forces and the Russian defense ministry did not respond to questions for this report.

Ukraine’s shortage of artillery shells has become a decisive factor in its struggle to repel Russian advances.

“3693314 at full power.”

“Ready! Shot, shot.”

Oleksii and his comrade in the artillery unit, call sign “Sailor,” say they all want to fight, but their biggest concern is the acute shortage of shells.

“There were times when we used 80 shells per day. Our hands got tired, we were physically exhausted, we were tired after discharging and firing at night. But now there is a Russian advance, and Russia has equipment to shell us with. We’d rather get tired than just sit out here, hiding. We are shelled and there is nothing to shoot back with.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said recently there were currently no reports of artillery shortages.

But during an interview with Reuters in May, he called on Western allies to speed up aid.

Ukraine largely relies on Europe and the United States for weapons and ammunition.

The U.S. Congress greenlit a long-delayed $60 billion military package in April.

But military analysts say that a severe global shortage of artillery shells means Ukraine will likely be outgunned by Russia for the remainder of the year.

But for many Ukrainian soldiers, like this infantryman with the call sign ‘Yeher,’ continuing to fight is the only choice.

“I fight for the future of my children. We chose our path, our independence, and we will fight for it. I’d rather we fight, we spill our blood, we defeat our enemies, than our children having to do this in the future. We are battling an enemy that wants to not only take our territory but to wipe us out. We have to understand this and stand up until the end.”

The use of drones has exploded during the war in Ukraine.

They make it almost impossible for both Ukrainian and Russian troops to move on the battlefield without being spotted from above.

Roman oversees soldiers in the 58th Motorized Brigade in the Donetsk region.

“They have the same drones. We have the same drones. Like, now, even going on a recon mission or even going as a sniper group, it’s harder than before, because while you do it, you always have to keep in mind that someone sees you at the daytime, the daily drones. At night time, there are drones with, like, a thermal vision.”

One of the most potent weapons has been FPV, or first-person view, drones.

These drones can be guided to a target kilometers away, and cost as little as $500 to produce.

Ukraine plans to produce more than a million FPV drones this year.

But soldiers and commanders say that’s not enough.

Heorhiy is the commander of a drone company in the 58th Motorized Brigade.

“I will be honest, one million drones is not enough for a year. We need at least two or three million drones. Because we know the enemy has more opportunities, more resources to produce these drones.”

When the war broke out, Roman thought he might be away from home for a year or two.

Now, he thinks the war will continue for at least a few more years.

But he says the decision to continue fighting isn’t really a choice. It’s a question of life or death for his people and his country.

And if Russia and Putin prevail in Ukraine, he’s convinced no one in Europe will be safe.

“For the whole world, we’re like, in the front line of defending – some people don’t understand it – of defending the whole Europe, because this motherfucker, he would never stop just in Ukraine, he would invade, like, other European countries, like the Baltic countries. He is acting from the side of the power and If you let him do it he is not going to stop only here, he will continue exploring his borders.”