Voronezh, Russia – A drone whirred through a shopping center in the Russian city of Voronezh as Shaman, an operator for the Russian army, showed shoppers one of the devices that have dominated the battlefield in Ukraine.
Hiding his face behind a balaclava, the 19-year-old said he would soon leave to fight in the war, vowing “to defend my country” — which launched a large-scale offensive against its neighbor four years ago.
Around 500 kilometers south of Moscow, Voronezh — a city of 1 million people — is closer to the front line in eastern Ukraine than to the Russian capital.
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