THREE years ago Russia invaded Ukraine and fired the starting gun for a needless bloodbath that has claimed countless lives.
I was in Mariupol as a Ukrainian marine at the time, defending the frontline with some of the bravest men on the planet.
Weeks later I would be captured, tortured and paraded in front of the world before being sentenced to death following a sham trial.
A prisoner swap brokered by then Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich sealed my release after eight months behind bars.
Now, as we prepare to mark the third anniversary, there is a clamour for peace and it's louder than it's ever been.
Top Ukrainian official Andriy Yermak. Zelensky's chief of staff, insists the nation is "very near to really ending this war by a just and lasting peace".
But don't be fooled into thinking that Ukraine will take it at any price or, likewise, that Russia won't press on regardless.
And don't be fooled into thinking that Russia has changed its stance and will settle for the out-lying border cities it occupies.
This is a stalemate war and despite a seismic political shift, it didn't end in 24 hours like Donald Trump promised.
He extended his guarantee by 100 days and, no doubt, when that's up he'll push it back even further.
That's not to say America won't ultimately determine the outcome of this war, they will.
Trump revealed he had spoken to Putin and insists he was making progress on ending the nearly three-year conflict.
But if the first few days of his new US administration have taught us anything, it's that Trump doesn't understand Ukraine one bit.
And that is terrifying given what is at stake.
To understand Ukraine you need to go back three years to February 2022 when Vladimir Putin launched his 'special military operation'.
Look at the invasion of Kursk - one of the gutsiest, classiest moves I've ever seen. No one saw it coming and it's now like a boil, festering on Putin's a***.
Shaun Pinner
The world held its collective breath for a shock and awe demonstration of military might that would end with him victorious on the steps of Kyiv.
Remember when everybody said it would be over in three days?
Three years on and we're still here. Three years on and the fighting continues.
In that time Russia has lost 50 per cent of the land it had originally grabbed and its weaknesses have been stripped bare for all to see.
Along parts of the front line, Russia hasn't, in three years of fighting, got 50km past their own border.
A third of its Black Sea Fleet is now at the bottom of the ocean after being sunk.
And at home, its economy is flatlining.
There's over 40 per cent inflation on basic goods in the occupied territories and in parts of Russia it's as high as 100 per cent.
Yet, we focus entirely on Ukraine, its fragility and dependency on western aid, yet all the while underestimate its will to survive.
Look at the invasion of Kursk - one of the gutsiest, classiest moves I've ever seen.
No one saw it coming and it's now like a boil, festering on Putin's a***. They made a mockery of Russia's borders but don't get the credit.
Don't get me wrong: everybody in Ukraine is fed up with it, we're all tired of the war.
Everybody knows someone who has been lost or taken captive by Russia and millions have been displaced.
Last year was possibly the hardest of all.
Military aid was held up by the US, Europe couldn't fill the shortfall, and Ukraine was running out of ammunition.
We didn't think we would have a Ukraine to come back to by the summer.
It was so dire, we were even packing our bags and getting ready to move.
There were horror stories coming from the frontline and we were cracking at the seams.
But, so long as the West keeps supplying the funds and the artillery, this war will eventually be about what Ukraine can domestically produce itself.
And at the moment, they're producing their own ballistic missiles.
They're hitting all the oil refineries. There isn't a part of Russia they can't touch.
We're just struggling for manpower - but so too is Russia.
They've had to recruit North Koreans to the frontline - and yet the world has simply accepted it as a matter of course.
The war is in stalemate, fought by two sides fighting with very similar tactics, but it would be foolish to think there will be peace at any price.
It would be the worst mistake ever and President Zelensky knows that.
Peace at any price would see Ukrainians forcibly conscripted into the Russian military machine for starters. They're already doing it in the occupied areas.
They would then seize control of Ukraine's technical capabilities and warfare innovations.
Russia will be six hours from Berlin by car. Missiles - ballistic, cruise, nuclear - will be closer to Europe with less warning time
Then they'll move onto the doorstep of Poland, Romania, Moldova.
If a peace deal is done, and Russia gets to keep the territory that it has already got, then the world is in a much more dangerous place.
Putin doesn't want peace. He may require a life-line, a pause to regroup, but he doesn't want peace.
He wants to march into Kyiv.
He's not going to be happy with settling for Mariupol or 30km in from his own border, up near Kharkiv.
He's in a worse position now than he was in 2022.
Peace in 24 hours? 100 days? Most of us in Ukraine can't see that happening.
There will be another Spring Offensive before that happens and both sides will play Trump's tune.
But if he is to be the kingmaker he must first stop underestimating Ukraine and realise Putin wants to build on the marginal gains he's made.
For now, Ukraine is still holding its own, it's still punching above its weight.
Now is not the time for indifference. Nothing has changed: it remains a fight for freedom and a battle between good and evil.
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