In Russia’s borderlands near Ukraine, military buildup becomes part of the scenery

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February 10, 2022 at 4:00 a.m. EST
A mother and her son, a Russian soldier, take a train from Novocherkassk to Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on Feb. 1. (Arthur Bondar/For The Washington Post)

ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia — From a train window, travelers had a rolling view of some of Russia’s vast military realignment: a warehouse with armored vehicles and antiaircraft guns near a base in southwestern Russia, not far from the border with Ukraine.

Nearby, troops, radio equipment and other military cargo made their way along highways, then onto smaller, rutted roads near Novocherkassk, about 15 miles northeast of the regional hub, Rostov-on-Don.