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At The Front Lines, Ukrainian Soldiers And Civilians Endure Cold, Wait For A Possible War With Russia

With freezing temperatures hardening the ground and a lack of foliage, midwinter is considered an optimal time for military action -- a fear shared by Ukrainian soldiers and civilians near the front lines in the east as Russia masses more than 100,000 troops around the country's borders.

Ukrainian servicemen in trenches in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, along with residents in the surrounding areas, are enduring cold winter conditions, uncertain of what's to come in the days and weeks ahead.
Ukrainian servicemen install a machine gun at an outpost on the front line in the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine on January 29.
1 Ukrainian servicemen install a machine gun at an outpost on the front line in the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine on January 29.
A Ukrainian soldier wearing winter camouflage walks to an outpost in the Luhansk region.
2 A Ukrainian soldier wearing winter camouflage walks to an outpost in the Luhansk region.
3
A soldier in the trenches
4 A soldier in the trenches
A Ukrainian soldier monitors the situation on January 29 from a trench using a periscope near the city of Donetsk, which is controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists.
5 A Ukrainian soldier monitors the situation on January 29 from a trench using a periscope near the city of Donetsk, which is controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists.
A soldier repairs a trench near Donetsk.
6 A soldier repairs a trench near Donetsk.
7
A Ukrainian soldier chops firewood on the front line near the village of Pisky in the Donetsk region on January 29.
8 A Ukrainian soldier chops firewood on the front line near the village of Pisky in the Donetsk region on January 29.
9
A local woman walks past a building destroyed during fighting between the Ukrainian military and the separatists in 2014. The photo was taken on the outskirts of Slovyansk in the Donetsk region on January 30.
10 A local woman walks past a building destroyed during fighting between the Ukrainian military and the separatists in 2014. The photo was taken on the outskirts of Slovyansk in the Donetsk region on January 30.
Lilia (left) and Tetyana, both residents of a village on the outskirts of Donetsk, speak to a journalist in a basement used as a bomb shelter on January 30. They live in an area controlled by the separatists, not far from the front line with government forces. Lilia and five other people live in a five-story apartment building without heat or water. Many houses in the region were abandoned because of heavy damage incurred during the military conflict in 2014-15. 
11 Lilia (left) and Tetyana, both residents of a village on the outskirts of Donetsk, speak to a journalist in a basement used as a bomb shelter on January 30. They live in an area controlled by the separatists, not far from the front line with government forces. Lilia and five other people live in a five-story apartment building without heat or water. Many houses in the region were abandoned because of heavy damage incurred during the military conflict in 2014-15. 
A Ukrainian soldier keeps watch in a trench on January 29 at the front line with the separatists in the village of Verkhnotoretske in the Donetsk region.
12 A Ukrainian soldier keeps watch in a trench on January 29 at the front line with the separatists in the village of Verkhnotoretske in the Donetsk region.
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