Life on the front line: what do people need?

Saturday 7 February 2026

The war in Ukraine has now entered a phase in which endurance matters as much as manoeuvre. While attention often focuses on weapons deliveries, battlefield tactics and diplomatic initiatives, daily life in front line regions tells a more granular story. Soldiers and civilians living and working close to the fighting face overlapping pressures that cannot be resolved by military means alone. For them the role of non-governmental organisations and the wider international community is not auxiliary to the war effort but integral to Ukraine’s capacity to sustain resistance and social cohesion.

The most immediate need remains physical safety and resilience under fire. Front line communities live with persistent artillery threat, drone surveillance and missile strikes. For soldiers this means reliable protective equipment, shelters, hardened medical posts and rapid casualty evacuation. For civilians it means reinforced basements, access to early warning systems and basic materials for fortifying homes, schools and municipal buildings. International support is often most effective when it enables local actors to adapt quickly, supplying modular shelters, generators, fire-fighting equipment and repair materials that can be deployed without complex logistics chains. Flexibility, rather than scale, is frequently the decisive factor.

Medical care constitutes a second, equally pressing requirement. Combat medicine for soldiers has improved markedly since 2022, but front line units still depend heavily on donated tourniquets, haemostatic dressings, portable diagnostic equipment and evacuation vehicles. Civilian healthcare systems in contested regions face parallel strain. Hospitals operate with damaged infrastructure, intermittent power and staff exhaustion. NGOs are often best placed to bridge the gap between military and civilian needs by supporting trauma care training, mental health services and rehabilitation for the wounded. This includes long-term treatment for amputees and those with spinal or neurological injuries, whose recovery will shape Ukraine’s post-war society as much as any reconstruction plan.

Beyond physical injury lies psychological harm, which accumulates silently. Soldiers endure prolonged exposure to violence, loss and moral injury. Civilians experience displacement, bereavement and the constant anticipation of danger. Front line regions show rising levels of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress, often compounded by limited access to specialist care. International assistance in this domain must be patient and culturally informed. Short-term counselling projects are insufficient on their own. What is needed is sustained support for Ukrainian psychologists, social workers and community organisations, enabling them to build trust and continuity in places where populations are transient and trauma is ongoing.

Economic survival is another critical concern. Many civilians in front line areas remain not out of choice but necessity, maintaining agriculture, transport, utilities and basic commerce under fire. Small businesses struggle with disrupted supply chains, labour shortages and physical destruction. Targeted grants, insurance mechanisms and support for local cooperatives can have disproportionate impact, preserving livelihoods and preventing complete depopulation. For soldiers, economic stability is inseparable from morale. Ensuring that families at home have heating, income and access to services reduces the psychological burden carried by those at the front.

Energy and communications infrastructure deserve particular emphasis. Electricity, heating and mobile connectivity are not luxuries in a war zone. They underpin medical care, command and control, civilian administration and simple human contact. Front line regions benefit enormously from decentralised solutions such as generators, battery storage, satellite communications and rapid repair teams. International donors often underestimate the value of redundancy. Providing multiple small systems that can be moved or replaced is frequently more effective than investing in single, vulnerable installations.

Coordination and respect for local knowledge remain decisive. Ukrainian civil society has developed exceptional adaptive capacity since 2014, and especially since 2022. NGOs and volunteer networks understand the terrain, the social fabric and the shifting risks far better than most external actors. International organisations are most effective when they listen first, fund flexibly and accept that needs evolve rapidly. Heavy reporting requirements and rigid project frameworks can unintentionally slow assistance to those who need it most.

Finally, dignity matters. Both soldiers and civilians in front line regions resist narratives that portray them solely as victims. They require partnership rather than pity, agency rather than charity. Education, cultural life and civic participation continue even under bombardment, and supporting these dimensions of life reinforces the idea that Ukraine’s front line regions are not merely buffers against aggression but living communities worth defending in their own right.

In supporting those who live and fight close to the front, the international community is not merely responding to humanitarian need. It is investing in Ukraine’s capacity to remain a functioning society under existential pressure. The effectiveness of that support will be measured not only by survival during the war, but by the social and human foundations that endure once the guns fall silent.