The war in Ukraine is a war for survival, and not only for the Ukrainian people, - FT
Date: 2024-04-19 Author: Кирило Загоруйко Categories: WAR
The war in Ukraine is not a war for land. The position of the Russian Federation is that the Ukrainian language and culture, Ukraine and Ukrainians do not exist. Ukrainian human rights activist, 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, head of the Center for Civil Liberties and board member of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Alexandra Matviychuk, wrote about this in her column for the Financial Times.
“The American $60 billion package has been stalled for several months due to the fact that for Americans this is internal politics, but for us Ukrainians it is a matter of life and death. At my meetings here I am often asked: since Ukraine cannot count on victory over Russia on the battlefield, shouldn't it agree to a territorial deal? Wouldn't more weapons mean more deaths? Indeed, there are too many deaths in Ukraine - I know because my colleagues and I see them every day,” she writes. .
Since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, thousands of Russian war crimes in Ukraine have been documented. These are murders, rapes and tortures - beatings, tearing off nails, electric shock to the genitals.
"One woman I interviewed had her eye gouged out with a spoon. To date, we have documented 68,000 crimes. But this is just the tip of the iceberg, because such crimes are central to both the method and the purpose of the invasion. Russia's position, as has been made clear repeatedly President, is that the Ukrainian language and culture, Ukraine and Ukrainians do not exist,” Matviychuk emphasized.
A premature deal with the Russian Federation would be wrong, not least because such a scenario already took place when Russia occupied Crimea and part of Donbass in 2014. A ceasefire was subsequently agreed upon, but all Russia did was use the next eight years to prepare forward bases for the next attack.
“Moscow will do the same thing again. A premature deal would also be immoral. You cannot make peace by disarming a captured country. That would be occupation, and we know what that means,” the author of the material noted.
Matviychuk emphasized that Russia is now intensifying attacks on the civilian infrastructure of Ukraine. Meanwhile, destabilizing actions are actively underway in Moldova and other countries neighboring Ukraine.
"Moscow is the center, but the imperial vision of Russia has no boundaries. This nightmare - the endless cataloging of human pain - will only continue," the column says
The solution is to defeat Russia and this authoritarian ideology. It is necessary to endure, and Ukrainians are doing it courageously. War is terrible, but Ukrainians know what Russia is bringing, and a clear majority of the population supports continuing the fight “as long as it takes.”
"We respect American policy. We know that every country has its own priorities and financial problems. We are grateful for the generous support we have received so far from the United States, Europe and other countries around the world, both from governments and from ordinary citizens But now we need even more help, and we need it soon. Ukraine wants peace more than anyone else. But we cannot fight evil with empty hands. Strengthen Ukraine, let us fight the war as far as we can. we can – our vision – up to the internationally recognized borders of 1991 – and then we will be able to discuss peace,” writes the human rights activist.
She emphasized that the war in Ukraine is not a war for land, but a war for survival. Moreover, for the survival of not only the Ukrainian people, but also the basic values - human rights, democracy, freedom.
