By Sarah Rainsford
BBC Japanese Europe correspondent, Kyiv
Dmytro Dubas thought his struggle was over. Now the US is warning of an all-out Russian invasion of Ukraine and the veteran volunteer fighter can't ignore it.
"Final week I used to be fairly disturbed; I even went to my psychologist for assist," he admits.
For months, Ukraine's Western allies have been pointing to Russian troops massing on the border. That's prompted navy analysts overseas to provide infinite maps lined in arrows that confidently predict how Vladimir Putin's troops will advance on Kyiv.
Ukrainians who'd be within the direct line of any such incursion are far much less satisfied it is going to occur.
However all of the struggle discuss is unsettling.
"Russia can all the time switch troops to the border in a matter of days after which invade, so this build-up is nothing totally different," Dmytro argues, in his Kyiv flat.
In 2014, then working in gross sales, he joined the flood of volunteer troopers pouring east when heavy preventing towards Russian-backed forces erupted. There's been a proper ceasefire in place since 2015 but it surely breaks down commonly and the specter of a sudden escalation within the violence is ever current.
However Dmytro had returned to civilian life, storing the reminders of his time within the trenches in an previous ammunition field painted and re-fashioned as a espresso desk in his lounge.
Now he's calmed his nerves by getting ready for the worst doable situation: filling his automobile with gasoline, shopping for emergency meals provides and signing-up with the territorial defence pressure to brush-up his expertise.
Western intelligence companies have ascribed all kinds of plans to Vladimir Putin, together with besieging Kyiv. Ukrainian officers from President Volodymyr Zelensky down have batted-back that concept, cautious of spreading panic.
On the identical time, metropolis colleges are practising bomb scare or air raid drills, social media is stuffed with official guides to getting ready an emergency "seize bag" for evacuation and folks have begun plotting their escape route which principally entails driving west as quick as they will.
Even pensioners have been becoming a member of weekend drills in woodland exterior Kyiv the place concrete manufacturing facility ruins lined in graffiti stand-in for a battlefield. The boys are too previous to signal formal contracts, however navy trainers don't flip them away.
"I don't assume the Russians will invade now because of our Western allies giving us weapons," 61-year-old Vasyl Nazarov says throughout a break from crouching on the ice and swivelling forwards and backwards to coach his weapon on an imaginary enemy.
It's his first session so his "gun" is a wood cut-out for now.
"I don't imagine they'll attain Kyiv however now we have to be prepared for that," Vasyl provides.
"I believe the West's menace of horrible sanctions will cease Putin," Serhiy Kalinin agrees, flicking a cigarette butt right into a snowdrift.
It's a number of a long time because the 64-year-old completed his necessary navy service so he wished a refresher course.
"The enemy is at our border," he says. "So everybody needs to be ready."
On the privately-owned Priamyi TV channel, Russia's deployment of some 100,000 troops to its border with Ukraine has now turn out to be "subject primary".
Presenter Taras Berezovets describes Russia's president as "unpredictable" and worries about Mr Putin's "idée fixe" that Ukraine has by no means been a sovereign nation.
"Putin needs to cease a nation making its personal selection, like Soviet leaders did in Japanese Europe for many years," the journalist says.
His personal biography captures a few of the complexity of this battle: his first language is Russian as he's initially from Crimea which Russia annexed illegally from Ukraine within the wake of mass protests in 2014 demanding nearer ties with Europe.
However Mr Berezovets says his roots don't make him pro-Moscow, or a part of any supposed "Russian world".
"We made our selection in 2014 and it's clear: we don't wish to be a part of the Russian 'empire'," he says firmly. "Even when there's no probability of becoming a member of the EU or Nato, our goal is to be a part of Western civilisation which suggests the rule of regulation, freedom of speech. These are issues Ukrainians are able to combat for."
Regardless of the Western intelligence experiences, Dmytro Dubas and his buddies don't sense that an all-out combat over Ukraine's future is simply across the nook.
The veterans have made plans to ship their households to security, simply in case, and agreed the place the fighters will meet up and the way they'll arm themselves.
However that finished, they're focussed on enterprise as regular not an exterior menace they should reside with long-term and geopolitical forces they will't management.
"It's a well-known meme that the largest headache for Ukraine is being subsequent door to Russia," Dmytro shrugs, at a gathering of shut buddies and colleagues in his kitchen.
A fellow veteran volunteer rattles off an entire lot of crises his nation has already seen and survived: from the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe to 2 revolutions then struggle within the east.
"It's regular in Ukraine for every part round to be in flames," Artem smiles.
"In the event you consider struggle each hour of day by day you simply go loopy," one other pal, Yuliia, agrees.
"In any case, we will't simply choose up Russia and transfer it, nonetheless a lot we’d wish to. It's our neighbour and now we have to reside with that."
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