My military service was a joke - but then I had to use it
Maksym Butkevych had to do compulsory military service at university; volunteering to fight at the start of the war in Ukraine, he was surprised to be put in charge of a platoon.
When human rights activist Maksym Butkevych decided to take up arms at the start of the war in Ukraine he was driven by a sense of duty. He went from defending the rights of refugees to becoming a prisoner of war - having his own rights denied in captivity. Maksym spent nearly two and a half years imprisoned, held in jails in Russian-controlled territory in eastern Ukraine. As a unit commander he looked out for the welfare of his fellow prisoners. In the jail they had nothing, but practising English offered an escape.
Presenter Asya Fouks
Producer Julian Siddle
Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707
Photo: Maksym Butkevych. Photo credit: Oleksandr Mahula
Last on
More episodes
Broadcasts
- Wed 2 Apr 2025 11:06GMT成人快手 World Service
- Wed 2 Apr 2025 17:06GMT成人快手 World Service except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa
- Wed 2 Apr 2025 21:06GMT成人快手 World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
- Thu 3 Apr 2025 02:06GMT成人快手 World Service
Contact Outlook
Info on how we might use your contribution on air
Podcast: Lives Less Ordinary
Step into someone else鈥檚 life and expect the unexpected