Ukrainian-Australians have been flooded with messages from Ukrainian civil society and loved ones that they will survive these latest terrorist attacks, will never surrender and will continue to fight to restore their country’s freedom and territory.
Putin’s attacks, timed and placed to wreak maximum panic and chaos to civilian centres, including downtown Kyiv, are a continuation of the missile terror Russia has been waging against Ukraine for 7 ½ months. They are a desperate attempt to change the course of the war, following Ukrainian military offensives around Kharkiv and in the south and east.
Numerous Ukrainian-Australians have checked in with family members living in and around cities impacted by the missile attacks. They have heard stories about terrifying bomb blasts and electricity and internet services being disconnected, but also heard stories about typical Ukrainian composure, self-assurance and determination to resist. Ukrainians have sought to help others, continue with their lives – one family member was determined to clean her windows as planned, as an act of personal resistance against the attacks.
Caritas Ukraine, who work in collaboration with the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisation’s (AFUO) humanitarian charity Ukraine Crisis Appeal, have asked Australian-Ukrainians to join them in praying for an end to the violence and to support their work providing food, water, shelter and medical supplies.
“Those affected by these strikes were ordinary people trying to go about their everyday lives; parents taking children to school; people on their way to work,” said Caritas Ukraine President, Tatyana Stawnychy.
“People across the country, including Caritas staff, have reached out to each other, to their friends and loved ones today, to ask “Are you safe?”
“The strikes, reminiscent of February 24, have made an already difficult humanitarian situation more acute, as the country prepares for what promises to be a difficult winter ahead.
“As a Caritas network, we stand in prayer with those who were affected today and remain dedicated to continuing our response to needs on the ground,” she added.
Vice Rector at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, Myroslav Marynovych, which has become a centre for humanitarian aid collation and distribution, spoke to family members late last night and said “The bombing of the Crimean bridge humiliated Putin and demoralized the Russians, but the bombing of Ukrainian cities has only rallied the Ukrainians.”
The President of Ukraine, Volodomyr Zelenskyy, has as usual responded with courage and grit “We are Ukrainians. We help each other. We believe in ourselves. And we restore everything that was destroyed. There will never be interruptions to our certainty – the certainty of victory.”
Photo Source: Ми – Патріоти України (FB)
