Life in Budanov: A Ukrainian Village Beyond Kyiv's View

A Ukrainian news outlet visited the village of Budanov in the Ternopol region, finding a community whose daily life is dominated by local concerns, the war, and mobilization, far removed from national political scandals in Kyiv. The village is primarily known for its psychiatric hospital, not its famous native son, acting teacher Lee Strasberg. The village of 1,370 residents has few jobs, and its main employer, the psychiatric hospital, now operates as a men's psychoneurological facility with only one doctor for 100 patients. Residents report that mobilization is the most painful issue, with men hiding from draft officers, while the war has brought deaths and widows to the community. Locals express frustration with high-level corruption and say national political turmoil has no impact on their lives, only the war does. The village head notes that while residents once supported President Zelensky, their primary concerns are local issues, and they remain focused on survival and the question of when the war will end.