Following the announcement on Wednesday, Ukrainian troops have begun preparing for potential clashes with Russia by digging trenches. One soldier, Timokha, joked about graves when discussing the depths of the trenches. He said: “It’s better to dig a trench 10 metres long than two metres deep.”
Ukraine’s troops are currently stationed around a kilometre from the frontline in the ruins of the eastern Ukraine village of Shyrokyne.
These troops have faced continuous gunfire from the Russian-back separatist group located in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
Only 800 metres away from them is the Sea of Azov that is shared by Russia and Ukraine.
On Sunday, three Ukrainian ships were seized by Russia that added fuel to the already tense relations between the two countries.
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In response to the seizures, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko declared martial law in 10 regions for 30 days.
The areas under martial law include regions that are near separatist-controlled territory and the coast of the Sea of Azov.
Timokha said: “We’ve been digging since early morning, as soon as martial law began.”
Mr Poroshenko warned they are now facing the possibility of a “full-scale war” with Russia while Russian President Vladimir Putin has called this a “small incident”.
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While their region has been at war since 2014, Timokha explained martial law signals a significant increase in operations.
He said: “Under martial law, we’re watching the enemy more closely, we’ve put up more observation posts.”
The soldier explained the troops were packing emergency rations and ammunition “so if something comes up, we can counter an attack by the enemy and move in various directions, not be tied to one place”.
However, Timokha was critical of his President’s decision following Russia annexation of Crimea.
He said: “They should have brought in martial law when Crimea happened.
“Russian military showed themselves then, but now is just another spike in the hostilities.”
Behind the soldier, someone had written “Glory to Ukraine” on the wall.
Trotsky, a machine gunner, said the troops have started to feel a new sense of threat from the Sea of Azov after the clashes earlier this week.
He said: “It’s like we’re boxed in, like we’re surrounded.”
No civilians have lived in Shyrokyne since there was tank fighting in 2015.
With the streets filled with burnt-out cars and children’s toys, the soldiers set up a field kitchen and washing area in the yard of one of the abandoned houses while machine gun ammunition hangs on the gate.
In the Ukrainian-controlled city Mariupol, a port around 20 kilometres to the west, nearly 100 residents held a rally in support of the captures sailors as their vessels had been heading towards Mariupol.
The organiser of the fall, Galyna Odnorog said: “We can’t stay silent when our sailors are held prisoner.
“We came to the protest to tell Putin: leave our country in peace.”
Besides the town’s border guards patrolling the Sea of Azov, little has changed in the town with the Kiev-backed authorities saying that they had not implemented curfews or closing checkpoint because of martial law.
A Ukrainian soldier, Sergiy, who is stationed at Mariupol’s commercial port said: “Nothing has changed for us with the introduction of martial law. We’re already into our fifth year of war.”