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鈥淲e don鈥檛 have another way for surviving, because we are an independent state, it's our territory, it's our land, it鈥檚 our culture, it鈥檚 our history, and we must fight to prevent the full occupation by the Russian Federation our territory.鈥�

Dan Johnson speaks to Vadym Skibitsky, deputy chief of the GUR, Ukraine鈥檚 military intelligence service, about the ongoing war with Russia.

Formed shortly after Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, the GUR is tasked with defending the country at home and abroad through the use of political and military intelligence.

Following Russia鈥檚 full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the service has played a key role in holding off and pushing back Kyiv鈥檚 larger neighbour through activities including intelligence gathering, espionage and sabotage. As the war gears up to enter another harsh winter with no obvious end in sight, both sides continue to look for new ways to break the deadlock.

In this exclusive, wide-ranging interview, Skibitsky discusses Russia鈥檚 use of North Korean troops and military hardware in the war. He also talks about Ukraine's latest strategy of deep-range drone strikes thousands of kilometres into Russia, and how its military plans to grind down Moscow.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the 麻豆社, including episodes with journalist Dmitry Muratov, former Sudanese leader Aisha Musa, and Ukrainian drone commander Robert Brovdi. You can listen on the 麻豆社 World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on 麻豆社 Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Dan Johnson
Producer: Anastassia Levchenko
Editor: Damon Rose

Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterview麻豆社 on social media.

(Image: Vadym Skibitsky. Credit: Vitalii Nosach/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)