Explaining Ukraine

Maksym Butkevych is a prominent Ukrainian human rights defender. Before the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he dedicated his efforts to the protection of people whose rights were violated. When Russia launched its war against Ukraine, Maksym joined the Ukrainian army to defend his country. In June 2022, he was taken prisoner of war by Russia and accused of committing a war crime. The case was entirely fabricated: Russia sought to “balance” the real war crimes committed by the Russian soldiers in Ukraine and prosecuted by Ukrainian courts with invented charges against Ukrainian prisoners of war. Maksym was sentenced to 13 years in prison. He spent almost two and a half years behind bars in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories before being freed in a prisoner exchange in October 2024. He endured beatings, deprivations, and torture, but his spirit remained unbroken. We met with Maksym in late August 2025. Our conversation turned philosophical—about life and death, freedom and fear, hope and des