Why Ukraine remains defiant and does not feel close to defeat

(Jeremy Bowen – BBC) On a dark and cold night in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, the netting protecting the road from attacks by explosive drones shimmered and rippled in the headlights of our armoured Toyota Land Cruiser, as we drove down strange and surreal tunnels to get in and out of the most intensive area of fighting in eastern Ukraine. The nets go on for miles, suspended from wooden poles around 20ft high along the sides and over the top of the road. Dystopian military vehicles straight out of Mad Max rumble past, encased in their own cages of steel and netting. Nets snag the propellers of attacking drones, making them a cheap and surprisingly effective physical barrier. Even if their Russian controllers detonate the charge they carry, there is a chance that the explosion will not be close enough to kill people using the road in civilian buses and cars as well as military vehicles. Much of the netting has been donated by European fishermen. Only this week the Scottish government announced it was sending over another 280 tonnes of salmon nets that were about to be recycled. Before any of it gets used, the Ukrainian military crashes drones into it to test its strength. – Bowen: Why Ukraine remains defiant and does not feel close to defeat