A surgeon in a wheelchair, an indomitable grandmother, and a man taking care of eight cats in a bombed-out flat: just some of people the BBC’s Andrew Harding has met on repeat trips to Ukraine’s front lines. He and the BBC’s Olga Robinson, who has family in Russia and Ukraine, talk to Katya about the power of individual stories, two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The Global Story brings trusted insights from BBC experts around the world, with Katya Adler. We need you to help us understand and tell The Global Story. Email ideas and thoughts to [email protected]. You can also message or leave a voice note on WhatsApp on +44 330 123 9480.

Today’s podcast was made by Neal Razzell and Bethan Ashmead Latham. The technical producer was Mike Regaard. The assistant editor is Sergi Forcada Freixas and the senior news editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.