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The Amanpour Hour

Interview with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Interview with Armed Forces of Ukraine, Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi; How Ukraine's New Land Drones are Changing the Battlefield; Interview with Oscar-winning filmmaker Susanne Bier; Archive: The Cost of War, Ukraine's Amputee Soldiers; Mother Teresa's Enduring Legacy. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired September 07, 2024 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:00:40]

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello everyone. And welcome to THE AMANPOUR HOUR.

Here's where we're headed this week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: You have to constantly think how to make the life of your enemy more complicated.

AMANPOUR: A major government shakeup in Ukraine as Russia steps up its ferocious missile attacks on the country. I speak to foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba just hours before he offered his resignation.

And --

OLEKSANDR SYRSKYI, ARMED FORCES OF UKRAINE, COMMANDER IN CHIEF (through translator): We moved the fighting to the enemy's territory so that he could feel what we feel every day.

AMANPOUR: -- as Ukraine takes the fight into Russia, my world exclusive with the mastermind behind Kyiv's counter offensive, Ukraine's new army chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Then --

OLEKSANDR BILETSKY, SHERP CEO AND FORMER SPECIAL FORCES OFFICER: And we should have technologies to kill more Russians.

AMANPOUR: -- technology providing a lifeline in this war. My report on the new land drones on Ukraine's front lines.

Also ahead --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you are half as lucky as your mother and I have been, you will have a very long and a very, very happy marriage.

Cheers. We love you.

AMANPOUR: -- a murder mystery in high society America. Oscar-winning filmmaker Susanne Bier, join me in the studio just before my trip to Ukraine on her new show, "The Perfect Couple" and casting Nicole Kidman again.

Plus -- a story of survival and endurance. An update on a wounded soldier we met here six months ago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Welcome to the program, everyone. I'm Christiane Amanpour in Ukraine this week, where the government is making more desperate appeals to the United States for Patriots and other top anti-missile defense systems.

Now, 30 months into this war, Russia has stepped up its all-out offensive across this country ballistic missiles striking energy infrastructure as Russia tries to cripple the grid for this winter, hitting hotels now, and also a military academy that killed dozens and wounded more than 200 people in one of the deadliest attacks of the war.

On the front lines, Russia creeps closer to taking the strategic logistical hub of Pokrovsk. And Ukraine solidifies its hold on Russia's Kursk region.

I spoke to Ukraine's foreign minister about this critical turning point and what he wants from the United States and NATO allies right now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Foreign Minister Kuleba, welcome to the program. You've had an important meeting with the president and members of the war cabinet today.

Poltava was attacked and there have been scores of injured and dead. Can you confirm for us what happened, what was targeted, what are the casualties?

KULEBA: Ballistic missiles, educational facility, the city of Poltava, a large city in Ukraine. I actually come myself from Poltava region. My father is from there. So, this geography is very familiar to me.

And we had a very detailed briefing. And the main takeaway, the main lesson that I want everyone again to hear about, and we will not get tired of reminding of it, this is just another reason why delivery of air defense systems to Ukraine must be expedited.

(CROSSTALKING)

AMANPOUR: Do you think if you had them there, this would have been intercepted?

KULEBA: Well, ballistic missiles are very difficult to intercept, and Poltava is in the east of Ukraine, so much closer to the Russian territory.

According to what I know, the time range for the for the ballistic missiles to reach the target was very short. And the only way to intercept them was to have -- to have a Patriot system or SAMP/T air defense system because they're the only one capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.

So, I didn't know how many more tragedies like this have to occur for all promises to be fulfilled and for all new commitments to be made.

AMANPOUR: So, obviously, you're waiting for more deliveries, but you've also said the weapons that you actually have, you need to be free to use them into its full capacity.

[11:04:46]

AMANPOUR: The head of the E.U. foreign policy agrees with you, says, otherwise, these weapons are useless. You said that you are fighting with your hands behind your backs.

I know that you have sent a delegation to the United States, to the administration. Where are you on trying to get these restrictions, and they're mostly from the United States, lifted?

KULEBA: Well, my impression is that we are facing a last-mile problem. And so I wrestle my mind on how to cover that last mile. The decision -- the capacity of Ukraine to strike military targets deep inside of Russia and diminish the Russian capacity for air attacks on Ukraine lays with the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany. These are the countries who are close to us, who are friendly to us, and they have necessary missiles.

So, they have to do two things, basically. First, to make a decision that allows us to strike these military airfields where strategic bombers take off carrying missiles and bombs.

And second, to provide us with the sufficient amount of those missiles. This is not a rocket science. This is just a very banal issue of making the right decisions on time.

AMANPOUR: Can I ask you about the Kursk incursion? This seemed to come as a big surprise to everybody. You obviously have very good operational security, but even your allies were surprised.

Why did you do this? From the -- let's just say from the diplomatic perspective, which you are the chief diplomat. What was -- what is the strategy behind this?

KULEBA: Well first, every war of this scale that we are having is -- has multiple theaters of war.

So, things happen simultaneously in different directions. And you have to constantly think how to make the life of your enemy more complicated. How to impose your will on the enemy and not endure the will of the enemy imposed on you. Second, you remember we spoke like in the spring, I think, and everyone was talking about a stalemate in the war, and there is nothing Ukraine can do.

Ukraine cannot change the course of the war. Russia is moving, is advancing, and there is nothing Ukraine can do. And it had a direct impact in capitals among our partners and their decision-making processes.

Now, we showed everyone, we defeated, not only we defeated the Russian army in Kursk, we defeated the argument so popular in -- among our partners that there was a stalemate. Because now, everyone sees that when -- everyone sees what we've been talking about all the time.

When Ukraine has everything it needs, we do not lack courage and military skill to advance and win.

AMANPOUR: As you know, Russians are advancing on Pokrovsk on, you know, important logistical hubs. Was this worth it, this trade-off? Because there is, as you can tell in the chatter around, there's some anger amongst Ukrainians.

They say, hang on a second, there's one thing going up there, but don't forget, we need to be able to defend the territory that we're trying to defend here. This is also really important.

Can you talk to that and to the trade-off if there is such one?

KULEBA: First, we do not think in terms of trade-offs. This is not our logic. We're not trading our territories. We are not trading our people.

There was a clear objective to make Russia's life more difficult, and this was one of the key goals of the Kursk operation.

Second, as President Zelenskyy stated on numerous occasions, we have taken many prisoners of war in Kursk, which will allow us to do a swap and bring our soldiers -- more of our soldiers back. This is a very important issue. Very --

(CROSSTALKING)

AMANPOUR: And the territorial swap possibly, is that also an issue? I mean, if you occupy however many square kilometers of Russian land, is that also a bargaining chip?

KULEBA: No, we don't -- again, we don't think of it in terms of swapping territories, because that will imply that we have to swap something in Ukraine, and we won't do that.

AMANPOUR: Lastly, as we speak, and as these ballistic missiles keep raining down, President Putin is in Mongolia being received by the president there. Mongolia is a signatory to the ICC. The president has been indicted for removing Ukrainian children. What's your reaction to that?

KULEBA: Well, if --

AMANPOUR: Did you talk to the Mongolians? Did you --

KULEBA: It's strong. Well, we told them -- we sent a very clear message ahead of the visit. It was ignored. We sent a very clear message after the visit began. It seems to be ignored as well.

[11:09:49]

KULEBA: We will be talking inside of Ukraine and also with our partners on how Mongolia's respect towards its own international obligations under the Rome --

(CROSSTALKING)

AMANPOUR: So you don't expect President Putin to be arrested while he's there?

KULEBA: Well, I do. But from everything I've seen so far, it seems to me that Mongolia decided to blatantly violate its obligations under the Rome Statute.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Now since our interview, Kuleba is amongst several cabinet ministers offering their resignations to President Zelenskyy in the biggest government shakeups since the start of the war.

Coming up, my international exclusive with the mastermind behind Kyiv's game-changing counter offensive, its incursion into Russia.

He is Ukraine's new army chief General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Also ahead Oscar-winning filmmaker Susanne Bier tells me about her latest murder mystery, "The Perfect Couple", starring Nicole Kidman.

[11:10:48]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AMANPOUR: Welcome back from Kyiv. Two-and-a-half years into this war, despite relentless Russian attacks, the country and its people remain resilient and determined.

Early last month Ukraine's armed forces shook up the battle front, making a big bet on a bold offensive into Russian territory. But as Ukraine's counteroffensive presses on, Russia is still making advances inside this country. And the stakes couldn't be higher, which is why I wanted to speak with the man leading the charge.

He is General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine's army chief. I spoke to him at an undisclosed location for security reasons.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SYRSKYI: I believe that Russia is trying to force us to give up and break our will to resist by hitting our civilian objects and damaging civilian infrastructure. By targeting our civilians in this way, they are trying to break our will to win.

AMANPOUR: I want to ask you about Kursk, because I know that you spend time there near the front lines, and I know that you and President Zelenskyy came up with this operation.

Tell me from your words and your view, what was the strategic purpose of the Ukrainian operation into Russian Kursk?

SYRSKYI: First, the enemy, Russian troops, had previously intended to use the Kursk direction as a foothold for further operations against our troops.

In addition, they continued to shell our settlements daily, which caused us to suffer losses, primarily among the civilian population.

For us, this direction was always a threat. Therefore, in assessing our capabilities, we chose the weakest point in the enemy's defense and the enemy's structure, and this direction was chosen.

This reduced the threat of an enemy offensive. We prevented them from acting. We moved the fighting to the enemy's territory so that he could feel what we feel every day. And we created our own security zone in the Kursk region.

In addition, we took a sufficient number of prisoners. We created an exchange fund in order to release our military personnel who are in captivity.

AMANPOUR: Can I ask you about the obvious imbalance, and that is essentially Ukraine, while you're fighting hard, you are outgunned by the Russians. They have much more air superiority for instance, more drones, they have more missile capability. They have more artillery capability.

How do you assess the difference between what you have and what they have, and how do you make up for that difference?

SYRSKYI: You are absolutely right. Because the enemy does have an advantage in aviation, in missiles, in artillery, in the amount of ammunition they use, of course, in personnel, tanks and infantry fighting vehicles.

But this also motivates us. We cannot fight in the same way as they do. So we must use, first of all, the most effective approach, use our forces and means with maximum use of terrain features, engineering structures, and also, to use technical superiority.

First of all, by focusing on high-tech weapons. These are primarily unmanned aerial systems for various purposes. You know that we have created the world's first such kind of troops as the Unmanned Systems Forces. We have created a command, we have created units, we have created regiments, we have created battalions, which are now proving their effectiveness in various parts of the frontline. AMANPOUR: Do you go to the frontlines? Do you go to the trenches? Do

you talk to soldiers there and commanders? What do they say to you? Because I know some of them have been there for, you know, more than two years. They barely get rotation.

They don't get to see their family. There are glide bombs, these terrifying things, and the drones. And there's just so much. I mean, it's almost -- it's almost World War I, kind of, you know, attacks on them in the trenches. And they're there for a long time with no real hope of rotation.

[11:19:52]

AMANPOUR: What do they say to you when you go to see them and talk to them?

SYRSKYI: We speak the same language. We understand each other no matter who I am talking to, whether it is an ordinary soldier, a rifleman for example or a brigade commander or a battalion commander.

You know that I have been in this war since 2014. Since the beginning of the full-scale aggression, I have been participating in combat operations as the commander of the operational and strategic group.

Now, I am the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. That is, the front line is my life. We understand each other. I know all the problems that our servicemen, soldiers, and officers experience.

AMANPOUR: You became the overall commander at about the time that the U.S. Congress finally approved, you know, the tranche of weapons and help that they had promised you. It was a delay of six to seven months. What material difference did that make to your fight, the fact that these weapons were delayed for so long?

SYRSKYI: Of course, this has had a negative impact when there's nothing to shoot with, no one and nothing to hold back the enemy. First of all, it leads to an increase in the level of losses, an increase in our losses, not only in material resources, but also in human resources, because the highest value in the Ukrainian army is the life of a soldier.

It is very painful for us. And of course, it is painful to see that the losses of soldiers are increasing.

Well, the effectiveness of the use of troops is also extremely reduced. Because when you have nothing to shoot with, you cannot hit the enemy efficiently and effectively. And this leads to the loss of territory. So, how can this affect us? Of course, negatively.

AMANPOUR: And has it made a significant difference that the weapons have started to come now?

SYRSKYI: Of course, this has led to significant changes. But we would like to see these weapons arrive sooner, because unfortunately, this process is happening, but it is happening with a delay. This is also negative for us. Especially when it comes to the

formation of new units, or when a unit is formed and there is no equipment, no weapons, how should we perceive it?

You plan to use a mechanized brigade, but, in fact, you use it as an infantry brigade. As a result, its combat capabilities and effectiveness are much lower.

AMANPOUR: And obviously, your ministers, your president are really appealing to the United States, especially, to stop the restrictions on how you can use the weapons that do get here.

What would you do with these weapons if there were no restrictions on them? How would you use them?

SYRSKYI: We have repeatedly declared how we are going to use them. Of course, we will use weapons only against military targets, primarily against missile systems that strike populated areas almost daily. This leads to the loss of civilian lives. You know how many schools and hospitals have been destroyed in Ukraine.

These are the airfields from which the strike aircraft of the Russian army, their aerospace forces, use missile weapons, use their guided aircraft bombs with gliding modules, which they drop to 70 kilometers or even more.

And again, they hit schools and populated areas. These are the targets. Of course, we will use long-range weapons against these targets. We are not fighting against civilians, we are fighting against the Russian army.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: It's very rare to hear from General Syrskyi. And after the break, the natives in unmanned warfare. How Ukraine's new land drones are changing the reality on the battlefield.

[11:23:53]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AMANPOUR: Welcome back.

And we're in Ukraine this week where accelerating technology is crucial to the success of their war effort against Russia, like ramping up the production and the military use of land drones.

In Kyiv, I visited a privately-owned factory that's doing that for the army. And I also took the pulse of how people here view the war 30 months in.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: The evidence keeps growing. Even here in Kyiv, far from the front memorials occupy ever more space. And since Ukraine's incursion into Russia's Kursk region, the war has returned to the cities with a vengeance.

Ballistic missiles hit Kyiv, destroying infrastructure, crippling the energy grid, raising fears.

Ukrainian journalist, Nataliya Gumenyuk tells me it's been a trade- off.

NATLAIA GUMENYUK, UKRAINIAN JOURNALIST: There is no discussion whether the Kursk was right but the question is, how much we lose in Pokrovsk, in the Donbass, it boosted the morale among the military. It showed that, you know, Ukraine can do something.

[11:29:44]

AMANPOUR: Just outside Kyiv there's an urgent race against time in this factory that's building unmanned vehicles or land drones because aerial drones make the front lines ever more dangerous for soldiers on both sides.

He is CEO and former special forces officer Oleksandr Biletskyi.

BILETSKYI: That's why we should have technologies to kill more Russians with the purpose and using the new technologies like using drones, using robots. That's it.

AMANPOUR: And these all all-terrain, all-weather drones are meant to save more Ukrainians. On the front, they can be controlled from as far as three kilometers away.

Here, we follow along behind. They can deliver everything from ammunition to water, and also remove the wounded from the front lines. Their production has ramped up since the full-scale invasion of 2022.

And the company insists Ukraine must develop more technologically- advanced systems for asymmetrical warfare to counter Russia's overwhelming manpower. And they want to be much more self-sufficient for the long haul.

30 months into this grinding conflict with the prospect of international support fading, are Ukrainians now ready to negotiate an end to it all?

GUMENYUK: It's really a matter of survival. We can't allow them to control our territory. And what they suggest is unconditional capitulation.

AMANPOUR: Surrender -- yes.

GUMENYUK: Unconditional surrender, or occupation.

AMANPOUR: And here Nataliya quotes her friend and Ukraine's Nobel Laureate who warns that occupation is not peace. It's just a different way of war.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Even though people are tired, they do say surrender and defeat are not options.

Coming up, "The Perfect Couple" -- wealthy families, a derailed wedding and a shocking murder. Before coming here, I spoke to filmmaker Susanne Bier about her hit new Netflix show, after the break.

[11:31:48]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AMANPOUR: Welcome back.

Now last week before I came here to Ukraine, I sat down in our London studio with the woman behind the eagerly-anticipated Netflix show, "The Perfect Couple". Oscar, and Emmy-winning filmmaker Susanne Bier is already known for taking on thrillers and murder mysteries with hit shows like "The Undoing", "The Night Manager" and "Bird Box". Now she's teamed up again with legendary actress Nicole Kidman for her new series, "The Perfect Couple".

Think murder mystery and weddings gone wrong with a star-studded cast.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there something that you want to tell me?

It all feels a little traumatic for an accidental drowning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why do you ask people to sign NDAs? We're partners.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're rich, kill-someone-and-get-away-with-it rich.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I see you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stop. Enough.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: And Susanne Bier came into the London studio to discuss the dark side of privilege.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Susanne Bier, welcome to the program.

SUSANNE BIER, OSCAR-WINNING FILMMAKER: Thank you.

So here is a really gripping murder mystery set in a high society, high class beach house in Nantucket, you know, the epitome of American upper-class vacation.

First of all, it's called "The Perfect Couple". Why did you call it "The Perfect Couple"? What makes a perfect couple?

BIER: Well, I think it's -- this is kind of obviously not a perfect couple. It's very ironic and it's a kind of -- it is a murder mystery and it is who didn't (ph), but it's also -- it's got clear comedic aspects, which is also a little bit what drew me to it, because all of the characters, every single one of them is sort of a little bit of wonderful, but a little bit nothing isn't quite what it seems.

AMANPOUR: Exactly and honestly, I have like many of the review is seen a certain number, most of them, but you haven't dropped the last one to us. And it's actually edge of your seat stuff.

And I'm probably stupid, but I can't figure it out. Or maybe it's a willing suspension of disbelief. I don't know.

But it's fun as well, right?

BIER: Yes.

AMANPOUR: It's dark but it's light and fun.

BIER: It's sort of dark in its undercurrent because it does -- it does have -- it does sort of suggest that maybe the upper class are not -- the sort of entitlement is not all sympathetic and it's not all likable. And at times incredibly disrespectful to other people.

AMANPOUR: We're also not so good for them. You see -- you see some of the characters kind of dissatisfied, unmoored, unmotivated because of their -- of their privilege.

BIER: All because of the expectation they have because of that privilege. But -- but essentially it is fun.

[11:39:46]

BIER: I mean, essentially you are kind of -- you're kind of enjoying that they are -- that they're all a various times are trying (ph) a little bit. And I think at various times, you do think maybe she did it?

AMANPOUR: Yes. Yes. Yes. I'm constantly thinking I know.

But let's go to almost one of the first scenes, if not the first scene in the first episode. And that is the wedding photo. It's the pre- wedding, you know, dinner and they're doing this -- you know, this video. So we're going to play it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICOLE KIDMAN, ACTRESS: We are so, so thrilled for both of you.

LIEV SCHREIBER, ACTOR: And to Benjie and his beautiful bride. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. & Mrs. Winfrey. Any words of wisdom for the bride and groom.

KIDMAN: Oh, come on. Yes, yes.

SCHREIBER: If you are half as lucky as your mother and I have been, you will have a very long and very, very happy marriage.

Cheers B, we loved you.

KIDMAN: We do. We love you. We love you.

SCHREIBER: Happy wedding eve.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Happy wedding eve.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love this woman to death. To death.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: "To death", not such a subtle piece of dialogue. So we see there "The Perfect Couple", because Nicole Kidman playing the author, wife, mother married to Liev Schreiber.

But I want to ask you, what was it like working with her again and how come you keep choosing her to play these kind of murder mystery kind of roles. The last time was "The Undoing" that you directed with Hugh Grant, which was hugely successful.

BIER: Well, she's very -- she's very enigmatic. and she has a kind of, you know, and I think I think Nicole -- she's so -- she's so enigmatic and I think she probably has secrets she doesn't know herself.

AMANPOUR: In real life?

BIER: You know what I mean? She has this kind of, you know, she's got so many layers. But also she's totally fearless. She is and she weirdly is devoid of vanity.

You know, you have this amazingly -- amazingly stunningly beautiful women where you, you literally, you know, when I stood next to her you know, I kind of reach her -- her mid-waist. I kind of feel like I'm looking up to this sort of beautiful giraffe-like creature.

But she doesn't care. She -- she's much more of a tomboy than she is somebody who really cares about her looks. And I find that really interesting, and I find that kind of mix really fascinating.

And so it doesn't, you don't -- you don't kind of run out of interesting facet to her because it just seems endless.

AMANPOUR: You said once, "I do think moviemaking is about seduction, and I do think seduction will then allow me to emphasize things that I personally think are important."

So what, in this case, were the important matters for you in this story?

BIER: I think by doing something really sexy and delicious and fun and not homework, like at all. I do think that you could kind of sneak in, you know, a political commentary might be a bit pretentious to say in this context, but there is a sort of moral, social commentary in terms of the world of wealth, the sort of entitlement, the conceit that the rules don't apply to you just because you are wealthy and privileged.

That whole thing are (INAUDIBLE) important, interesting, and worthwhile describing. And I'm more keen to describe it in a sort of lightweight manner than I am in a heavy weight because I just think it works better.

AMANPOUR: Thank you very much for being with us.

BIER: Thank you so much for having me.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: And all episodes of "The Perfect Couple" are now streaming on Netflix.

Still to come, an update on one terribly wounded warrior who I met in a hospital here earlier this year. His spirit won't be broken.

That's after this break.

[11:43:58]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AMANPOUR: Welcome back.

And we look into the archive now.

Across Ukraine as the war grinds on, the human cost, the loss of life is etched in the faces of almost everyone we meet, civilians and soldiers alike.

When I was last here in February, as Ukraine marked two grim years of war, I was taken inside the battle for survival in a hospital in Dnipro located in the eastern part of the country and I was given rare access to visit with doctors and the frontline patients they were caring for.

Among them were many who had lost several limbs, but not their will to live and to fight.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: The parking lot at Dnipro's Mechnikov Hospital is jammed with ambulances. These patients are the lucky ones, fully stabilized here. After their wounds have been treated, they are being evacuated to hospitals in ten other Ukrainian cities. It's a bloody carousel because they're making room for the next wave of casualties.

[11:49:44] AMANPOUR: In the resuscitation ward, director Sergii Ryzhenko tells us in the two years of Russia's full-scale invasion 28,000 frontline soldiers have been brought to this hospital alone.

DR. SERGII RYZHENKO, MECHNIKOV HOSPITAL: From 50 to 100 patients who are very serious -- very, very serious.

AMANPOUR: Every day, every night --

DR. RYZHENKO: Every day, every night.

AMANPOUR: 50 to 100 patients from the Avdiivka Donetsk region.

DR. RYZHENKO: Yes.

AMANPOUR: And the injuries are grave: shrapnel from artillery, mines and other direct fire. Avdiivka is the town that recently fell and that's where these soldiers have come from.

But in the next ward, alone in his room, Army Sergeant Vasily Hulyak (ph) was injured on Sunday, operated on Monday, and had three limbs amputated. He says the Russians are basically just throwing meat at us, mobilized men who run at us in an open field.

AMANPOUR: Do you have enough troops and enough ammunition?

How do you fight them.

"We're on our own lands," says Vasily. "We fight to the last and do not give up. If they get past us, our families will be next. We have no right to lose."

AMANPOUR: Waiting in the corridor outside, his worried parents.

"You know, he didn't ask us to go," said Mykola (ph). We didn't tell him not to. He said he had to".

And his mother Halina (ph) tells us, "He said I'll do everything I can and everything that's in my power."

Like so many Ukrainians, they've given their son to the defense of this land ever since Putin started robbing them of it ten years ago.

The director tells us nonstop surgery every day, all day and all the operating rooms contributes to the 95 percent survival rate, which is higher now, after ten years of improved combat surgery and techniques.

Every operation, every patched-up patient is a matter of patriotic duty. Even giving blood is marked with a celebration.

Here we run into American hedge funder and philanthropist Whitney Tilson, who's raised money for ambulances, generators, battery packs.

But beyond the humanitarian, he sees the big thing.

WHITNEY TILSON, INVESTOR AND PHILANTHROPIST: I think the stability of the entire world depends on the West helping Ukraine stand up to this aggression, because if we let Putin win I think this is just the beginning.

AMANPOUR: And somehow incredibly like the other wounded warriors we've spoken to, Vasily says he wants to get back to his comrades on the eastern front.

Are you and your soldiers still highly-motivated? You've been fighting for ten years.

"I have no choice," he replies. "Do you understand? Of course, I'm motivated."

As for the lost limbs, he says he can be a trainer. He can still be useful in this fight, which from here looks like it'll last a lot longer than anyone thought.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: And we are happy that more than six months since we last saw him in that Dnipro hospital, we can share good news that Vasily is now going through an intensive rehab program. His wife and daughter by his side, ensuring that he has the love of family as well as the professional care and preparation to have prosthetic legs and an arm fitted.

It's a story of uncommon valor.

And when we come back, remembering one of the most visible and compassionate ministers to the terminally-ill. Mother Teresa, who died 27 years ago this weekend.

[11:53:34]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AMANPOUR: And finally, here in Ukraine, amid the endless destruction and mounting deaths, we're reminded that in these times of unimaginable suffering, individual acts of kindness and care are a powerful force, a lifeline indeed.

This week, as we mark the 27th anniversary of Mother Teresa's passing, we reflect on her legacy of compassion and service, qualities that continue to inspire today.

Now, back in 2005, I was given exclusive access inside one of Mother Teresa's hospices. This one in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. And there I visited with her nuns, the Missionaries of Charity, and I watched young volunteers from the United States, the United Kingdom and elsewhere dispense their love and care to the world's least wanted in their dying final days.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANCESCA CHURCH, AID VOLUNTEER: I've always wanted to work with the sisters of Mother Teresa and to work with the poor. AMANPOUR: Francesca Church is 18-years-old and far from her London

home.

CHURCH: We watched the famine in Ethiopia on the television and you sit in the comfort of your sitting room. And there's no way in which you can actually smell the smells and really touch the people and really actually feel what it, what it's like?

AMANPOUR: It's an intense experience for someone so young.

How do you cope?

CHURCH: Faith -- it's the only way that I that I can cope. And I came her and I think that's one -- that's my one strength is that I know that when these people go that they go to God.

[11:59:52]

CHURCH: That's the incredible beauty of it is that you come into this room and these people are dying and there's -- there's nothing you can do.

You can just love them and do the very best you can to make sure that their last moments that they felt that there was someone there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Francesca and all the volunteers who minister in crises and wars to this day are the unsung heroes of our times.

That's all we have time for. Don't forget. You can find all of our shows online as podcasts at cnn.com/podcasts and on all other major platforms.

I'm Christiane Amanpour in Ukraine.

Thank you for watching and I'll see you again next week.