Four Ukrainian soldiers have spent months without rotation near Chasiv Yar. Why can't they be replaced?

Ukraine's Eastern Operational Command confirmed to hromadske that the four men - Vadym, Andrii, Valerii and Pavlo - remain in the combat zone near Chasiv Yar. It said they would be among the first to be replaced once battlefield conditions allow it, but that attempting a rotation now would expose soldiers to an unjustifiably high risk.

The Office of the Military Ombudsman has meanwhile opened a review into the case. Under an order cited by the office, Ukrainian troops should normally spend no more than two months at combat positions before being replaced.

The case illustrates a problem that has become increasingly acute as drones have transformed the battlefield: moving troops to and from exposed positions can itself reveal them to Russian forces and trigger an attack.

Months at the same position

Vadym, a former laborer from Rivne Oblast, was mobilized in May 2023 and has served in the military since that summer. His sister Oksana says he entered his current position near Chasiv Yar on Dec. 17, 2025, and has not left it since.

Three other soldiers have remained there for similarly long periods. Pavlo, 30, has been at the position since Dec. 1; Valerii, 36, since Jan. 10; and Andrii, 55, since Feb. 7, according to their families.

All four had civilian lives before or between periods of military service. Andrii worked as a construction foreman, while Valerii made furniture in Lviv. Pavlo joined the military under contract in 2020. Vadym worked various manual jobs in his village before being mobilized.

Their families say rotations were more regular earlier in their service. Vadym, for example, would previously spend between 10 and 20 days at a position before being replaced, his sister said. Over time, those periods grew longer.

The four men eventually expected replacements to arrive during the winter. According to Vadym's account to his sister, new soldiers were sent toward their position but never reached it.

By then, simply moving people and supplies around the area had become increasingly dangerous.

Water, food and fuel delivered by drone

Vehicles can no longer reliably reach the position, according to the soldiers' families, so food, water, fuel and clothing are largely delivered by drones.

Those deliveries do not always reach the men.

During the winter, supplies could remain on the ground nearby for days because shelling made it too dangerous to leave shelter and retrieve them, Oksana said. Russian forces later began tracking and shooting down some of the drones used for deliveries.

Water became particularly difficult to obtain during the summer.

The soldiers found water in a flooded dugout several hundred meters away and for about two months went there at night with canisters, Oksana said. Water purification supplies were delivered by drone. Eventually, the dugout dried up.

After that, they depended on bottled water dropped from drones, with some bottles breaking on impact.

"There were times when they drank less than half a cup of water a day. They were rationing it," Oksana said.

The dangers of resupply also demonstrate the difficulty of moving people around the position.

After relatives complained about shortages, nine packages were dropped to the soldiers during daylight on Aug. 6. Vadym told his sister that a Russian drone spotted them as they tried to retrieve the supplies. Their position was then shelled for around seven hours.

Eastern Operational Command told hromadske that Russian reconnaissance and attack drones create additional risks for both soldiers and vehicles delivering supplies, forcing routes and delivery times to be changed or postponed.

The command said the troops were being provided with food, water, medicine, clothing and other necessities whenever battlefield conditions allowed, including through drone deliveries.

"There is no strength left"

The families say the prolonged deployment has taken a severe toll.

At the end of July, a wounded soldier reached the position occupied by the four men. They treated him, and he later managed to make his way to the rear on his own when conditions permitted.

Vadym and the other soldiers were not allowed to leave with him, his sister said. They were told that a group of five men moving together would be too visible and that, unlike the wounded soldier, they were not injured.

The four were initially told they could leave the position in late July. Later, they were told they might be withdrawn in smaller groups when weather conditions were favorable. Their families say no date was given.

"There is no strength left," Vadym later told his sister. "We are ready to die here just so we don't have to suffer anymore."

For the families, the uncertainty has become increasingly difficult.

"I don't want anything anymore. I just want them to bring them out," Oksana said.

Andrii's sister Anastasiia told hromadske that her brother, who has been at the position since February, had also repeatedly expected to be rotated out.

"For someone else, it's just a surname. For me, it's someone close to me whom I haven't seen for seven months," she said. "Every day I'm afraid, wondering whether he's alive."

Valerii's brother Maksym said Valerii volunteered for the military in 2022 and later returned to service after being wounded and undergoing rehabilitation.

Pavlo's sister Marichka said her brother had previously received leave and underwent rehabilitation following surgery. But when another of their brothers died recently, Pavlo could not leave the position to attend the funeral.

The families say their main demand is now simply that all four men be replaced.

Why haven't they been rotated?

Eastern Operational Command confirmed that Vadym, Andrii, Valerii and Pavlo are serving in the combat zone near Chasiv Yar and acknowledged their prolonged time at the position.

It said they would be prioritized for replacement once conditions permit.

"Given the current security situation, enemy activity and unfavorable weather conditions, replacing the troops at the position is currently impossible, as it would expose service members to unjustified and increased risk to their lives and health," the command told hromadske.

It said it currently saw no grounds for an internal investigation into the situation.

The Office of Ukraine's Military Ombudsman, however, told hromadske that it opened a review after receiving a complaint from Andrii's sister on Aug. 18.

According to the office, an order by the commander-in-chief stipulates that service members should remain at combat positions for no longer than two months before mandatory replacement. A rotation should then take place within one month and should be planned in advance based on battlefield conditions, the nature of combat and available forces.

When soldiers complain about spending excessive periods at combat positions, the ombudsman's office reviews the circumstances. If violations are confirmed, it pushes for the troops to be withdrawn when security conditions allow.

The central question in this case therefore remains unresolved: whether the four soldiers could have been replaced earlier, before battlefield conditions made their movement so dangerous.

What is clear is why moving them now is difficult.

Around Chasiv Yar, Russian reconnaissance and attack drones can observe routes used for both logistics and troop movements. A journey intended to bring exhausted soldiers to safety can expose both those leaving the position and the troops sent to replace them.

For Vadym, Andrii, Valerii and Pavlo, that has meant waiting - for safer conditions, for replacements and for a chance to leave positions where they have already spent months.