Soldiers travel to the city of Kramatorsk—just 30km from Bakhmut—to spend time with their partners. But there is a lively market for commercial love, too
Kramatorsk, an industrial city of 150,000 before the latest invasion, is reinventing itself as a romantic destination. On the front line since 2014, Russia’s renewed onslaught in February 2022 brought its very existence into question. Within a few weeks, Kramatorsk’s factories shut down and most of its civilian population fled. Now the city is profoundly militarised.
Artyom, an estate agent, says he has done good trade ever since the Kyiv train started running again in October. Some 80% of his business is now short-term lets to soldiers and their partners; the rest is long-term accommodation for refugees. At 1,000 hryvnia for 24 hours, Artyom’s going rate is twice the pre-war level, and as expensive as in parts of Kyiv. But demand is strong, fuelled by good military salaries.
The source need not be too concerned. A conversation with the sex workers later reveals that they see themselves as integral parts of the war effort. “We are here to lift our wonderful boys’ spirits,” says Natalie, a blonde in her mid-20s. “They are defending us, and we want to help them in any way we can.” Natalie says her collective works 24/7, through air raids, and has even done outcalls to positions nearer the front lines.
Maniasha says her 18-year-old son is fighting in the army. She tried to stop him from enlisting, but is proud he did. Now, even the appearance of a young soldier at the brothel makes her cry. “You can’t stop yourself thinking this lad will head to the front lines and never return,” she says. “You do whatever you can to give him confidence, to caress him. You tell him he is a fighter, a hero.” The encounters are not always about sex, says Natalie.
For the first time in months the news coming from the blackened town down the road is encouraging. An unexpected surge from Ukraine is turning the tide of the battle, a full 11 months after it began. Much of the high ground on the town’s northern and southern flanks is now back under Ukrainian control. The, the most aggressive of Russian forces, is much diminished; the Russians have been suffering staggering losses.
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