Igor Smelyansky, head of Ukraine's state postal service Ukrposhta, navigates daily decisions about where to send his postal workers amidst Russian attacks in eastern Ukraine. These workers deliver essential services like pensions, utilities payments, food, and medicine to remote villages, making Ukrposhta crucial for millions of vulnerable Ukrainians. Since 2022, Russia has targeted over 500 Ukrposhta branches and vehicles, resulting in more than 50 casualties among postal staff. Smelyansky faces tough choices between protecting lives and ensuring vital supplies reach those who depend on them.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-15,
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same event (that is the story summary below).
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- Published
Every morning Igor Smelyansky looks at a vast map of Ukraine on his office wall and decides where he should put his people in harm's way.
asserted
he → publish → way
His aides provide him with live intelligence about Russian attacks and he deploys his teams, balancing their potential operational success against risk to life or limb.
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he → provide → life
And every day he must decide how far to send his postmen and women into the deadly "kill zone" along the front lines where the threat of drone attack is ever present.
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threat → decide → attack
"If it's too dangerous to go today, we won't go," Smelyansky told us.
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Smelyansky → go → us
"We'll go tomorrow, or we'll go somewhere else.
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we → go → ?
Ukrposhta does more than just collect letters and parcels.
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Ukrposhta → do → letters
It pays out pensions in hard cash, it takes payment for utility bills.
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it → pay → bills
And it delivers vital food and medicine to people on the margins of society.
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it → deliver → society
As such, it offers a lifeline to millions of poor and elderly Ukrainians living in remote villages where shops are rare and trips to the city are expensive and dangerous.
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trips → offer → city
In a vast rural nation wracked by war, Ukrposhta is part of the glue that holds the country together.
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that → wrack → country
That has made the service a target for Russia - which in recent months has stepped up not only its attacks on postmen and women but also sorting offices and logistical hubs.
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which → make → postmen
The Kremlin has claimed strikes like this are retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on Russian online retailers like Wildberries.
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strikes → claim → Wildberries
Speaking in his imposing Soviet-era office building that overlooks Kyiv's famous Maidan square, Smelyansky said: "If we don't go [to a village], we don't have basic supply.
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we → speak → supply
We don't have food.
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We → have → food
We don't have medicine.
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We → have → medicine
People will struggle.
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People → struggle → ?
If we do go, they may delay a decision to evacuate from the areas they probably should have evacuated.
uncertain
they → go → areas
If a post van turns up unannounced, a crowd can form, creating a target for an opportunistic Russian drone operator.
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crowd → turn → operator
But if they call ahead, information could leak.
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information → call → ?
"Is it a danger?" Smelyansky said.
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Smelyansky → say → ?
Because there are Russian sympathisers who can give them the location of the truck that's coming."
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that → be → truck
By attacking Ukrposhta, you put pressure on people… who are depending on the truck coming in
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who → attack → truck
If Smelyansky chooses not to send a van in, he faces criticism.
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he → choose → criticism
"You get messages from people from those villages: 'You betrayed us.
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You → get → us
You didn't come...'
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You → come → ?
But if I go, I may risk the life of the driver."
Smelyansky says Russia is deliberately targeting his staff because of the vital role they play shoring up Ukraine's resilience, helping people stay alive in their homes through the fighting and bitter winters.
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people → go → fighting
"It's not an accident, it's deliberate," he said.
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he → say → ?
"By attacking Ukrposhta, you put pressure on people… who are depending on the truck coming in."
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who → attack → truck
Russia denies targeting civilians
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Russia → target → civilians
Since 2022, hundreds of Ukrposhta branches and vehicles have been hit, and more than 50 staff have lost their lives, either on the frontline or on their rounds, according to Ukrposhta.
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staff → hit → Ukrposhta
We travelled with Kateryna Marynych, a 38-year-old postmistress, near Zaporizhzhia - a city not too far from the southern frontlines.
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We → travel → frontlines
She lost her home and her husband during the full-scale invasion, and came to the area to rebuild her life.
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She → lose → life
She ran the post office in the village of Lukasheve for two years until it was destroyed in March by a Russian drone, targeting soldiers working nearby.
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it → run → soldiers
After her van drew up, a steady queue of elderly folk formed.
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queue → draw → folk
She sat in the front passenger seat, window open, handing out cash, taking payments.
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window → sit → payments
One customer, Nadiia, said she was grateful: "It's a long way for us to travel to Zaporizhzhia.
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us → say → Zaporizhzhia
The fact that they come here is really nice."
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they → come → ?
Oleksandrivna, 77, arrived wearing a purple dressing gown, walking with a crutch.
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Oleksandrivna → arrive → crutch
When I asked her where she would be without Kateryna, she replied: "We would be stuffed!
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We → ask → Kateryna
Where could I go for my medicine?"
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I → go → medicine
…and 19 more, not listed.
The Aporia
