In a forested area just outside Ukraine’s capital Kiev, mock Russian troops ambush camouflage-clad army reservists, IgbereTV reports.
The would-be Ukrainian soldiers, who include architects and researchers in their ranks, return fire with replica Kalashnikovs as imitation smoke grenades explode around them.
“I believe that every person in this country should know what to do… if the enemy invades their country,” Daniil Larin, a 19-year-old university student, told AFP during a short break from the exercises.
Larin was one of about 50 Ukrainian civilians who drove from Kiev to an abandoned Soviet-era asphalt plant on a recent weekend afternoon to train for how to defend their country in the event of a Russian invasion.
Dozens of civilians have been joining Ukraine’s army reserves in recent months, as fears have mounted that Russia — which Kiev says has massed around 100,000 troops on its side of the border — is plotting to launch a large-scale attack.
