Mum's pride as son joins Ukrainian war effort

A Ukrainian mother who fled to England with her children at the start of the war with Russia says she is proud of her son after he joined their country's war effort.

Olesia Khrapova arrived in Grantham, Lincolnshire, in 2022 with her six-year-old daughter and son, Maksym Khrapov, then 16, following attacks on their home town Odesa.

Last summer, Mr Khrapov, now 19, joined a four-year military academy course, training to become a soldier, after he said he wanted to return and "defend his country".

Ms Khrapova said she admired his decision but admitted she would be worried if he went to fight. She said: "I really hope when he finishes his course the war will have stopped."

It is now three years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered up to 200,000 soldiers into the country, wanting to overthrow the pro-Western government and return Ukraine to Russia's sphere of influence.

Ms Khrapova, her two children and her husband lived in a14th-floor flat when they came under attack.

"I jumped from my bed because of bombs. It was so scary," she recalled.

"I saw a big explosion from my window. I just thought I have to save my child."

Two weeks later the family packed their bags to board a train to Poland but Ms Khrapova said she feared her son would not be allowed to leave because "he looked like a man".

"I started to scream. 'It's my second child, it's my second child'. I had to almost fight for a place on the train," she added.

"We spent 40 hours on the train. Our food finished, our water finished. It was difficult. People laying on the floor and 150 people in one carriage."

After a three-month stay in Poland, Ms Khrapova and her children found a host family in Grantham, but she said her son wanted to return to Ukraine.

The 42-year-old said she tried to help him settle in the area, but after two years had now accepted why he wanted to return.

She said: "It's his decision. I am so proud of him. He is so strong. He's not a child now."

Mr Khrapova said he knew he wanted to join the war effort as soon as he turned 18.

He said: "When the war started the only thing I thought about is to defend it (Ukraine).

"I want to make a bigger impact on Ukrainian defence now and in the future."

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said last week that military planning to protect a potential Ukraine ceasefire was moving to an "operational phase" after a virtual meeting with 29 other world leaders.

Ms Khrapova will be hoping she gets her wish that the war ends before her son graduates and joins the front line.

"I can't believe he's going to fight. I can't think about it (him fighting)," she said.

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