Maloletka has been chosen by the Guardian picture desk as its agency photographer of the year. We spoke with him about his year covering the conflict in his country for the Associated Press, and present a selection of his best work
In early 2022, the Ukrainian photojournalist Evgeny Maloletka was covering violence in Kazakhstan when his attention turned back home: there were several reports signalling that Russia was preparing an invasion.
He didn’t have to think twice: he knew he had to be back in his home country. By mid-January, he was already working on assignment for the Associated Press in the city of Kharkiv and the Donbas region, in eastern Ukraine, where there was a growing tension among Russian proxies.
