The troops hide heavy equipment and hardware from view to prevent targeting by separatist artillery. Photos by Louis Dowse.
Running for cover under sniper fire at the first line of defense in Tr'okhizbenka.
In the frontline village Tr'okhizbenka, shelling from separatist tank positions heavily bombarded the civilian population.
One of the soldiers, nicknamed "Communist," sleeps between patrols.
Portraits of Lenin used for target practice. Since the beginning of the war, there has been a widespread rejection of Russia and the echoes of the former Soviet Union.
Going out on patrol in Tr'okhizbenka.
Commandos often hunt as a means of supplementing their diet.
Two soldiers practice their hand to hand combat.
"Bachar" — Pashtun for "Young Man" — is a veteran of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In the years prior to the war in East Ukraine, he protected NATO supply convoys in Afghanistan's Kandahar province.
"Chornee" (Black) is from Luhansk city. His home now occupied by separatists, the frontline has become his home.
In Tr'okhizbenka, some soldiers occupy their free time with a game of volleyball.
Entrance to the barracks in Tr'okhizbenka.
Soldiers still sleeping early in the morning in Tr'okhizbenka.
"Fox" joined the commando platoon early in the conflict. Like many others, his plan is to work as a mercenary once peace has returned to east Ukraine.