It is Saturday evening when Serhij Stachowski has an interview with the FAZ for the first time.

A video call via Whatsapp, Stachowski picks up.

He's in a car wearing a camouflage suit and holding an assault rifle.

Where he is going, he does not want to say.

Second interview attempt on Sunday evening: the former tennis pro is at home, the internet connection is stable.

Stachowski, 36 years old, now in an olive-colored sweater, looks tired; he just finished his patrol shift an hour ago.

Thick curtains in the background swallow up the dim light of the apartment.

There is no sign of Kyiv, but explosions can be heard at the end of the conversation.

On Monday morning, German media published videos of rockets hitting the city center.

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volunteer

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Mr. Stachowski, how are you?

How is the situation in Kyiv?

I'm fine so far, at least physically.

It's quiet in the city center.

Rockets are fired.

Unfortunately, sometimes they hit buildings and kill innocent people.

In Kyiv itself, however, there are no shootings and no Russian soldiers.

It is nothing compared to what is happening in Mariupol, for example.

You are a volunteer of Territorial Defense of Ukraine.

What is your job?

We can only be deployed within the city.

The unit was created so that the armed forces could do their work more freely and flexibly, while the cities were more or less protected by territorial defenses.

I patrol the roads near our base and keep it safe there.

We look for Russian agents there and prevent marauders from breaking into shops.

Basically, we make people feel safe day and night.

What does the daily routine look like, is there something like everyday life?

Not really.

I mean we sleep, we eat.

But everything that used to be our everyday life no longer exists.

We are a group of three to five people.

We have a sector that we patrol.

Everyone has a two-hour shift, then a six-hour rest break, then you have to go out again for two hours, whether it's day or the middle of the night.

Life is slowly coming back to Kyiv.

It makes our work a bit more difficult when there are more people and cars on the streets.

But I think the city should get back to normal.

I believe that we will win this war.

On the other hand, we see the pictures from Mariupol and other cities.

We don't know the plan for Kyiv.

They could start bombing.

People are coming back to Kyiv?

Yes, yes, they come back, not just men, but families too.

I think the first wave of fear is over, they feel safer here than anywhere else.

Also, many have financial reasons.

For two or three weeks they were able to support themselves with their savings.

Now those funds have been exhausted and the only option left for people is to return home and try to get back to work to provide for their families.

Did you have any military training before getting into territorial defense?

Not really, no.

I once learned how to shoot a pistol or rifle, but only as an amateur.