Every now and again you catch a faint smell of coffee in the air as you wander round the Unesco-designated old town in Lviv, western Ukraine. Things look normal. Many shops are open. People are out with children. And church bells ring the hours.
But the normality is an illusion.
Armed guards check your ID if you enter one of its historic coffee houses due to fears that Russian saboteurs might plant bombs. Shops selling guns and ammunition are running out of stock.
The chi...
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Already a member? Login hereAndrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.
Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.