At a time when Washington is increasing warnings of the imminence of a Russian invasion, thousands of Ukrainians marched on Saturday to show their unity.
“The Ukrainians will resist”: Wrapped in blue and yellow national flags, several thousand people marched in the center of Kiev on Saturday to show their unity at a time when Washington multiplies the warnings of the imminence of a Russian invasion. “Panic is useless. We must unite and fight for our independence. says student Maria Chtcherbenko holding a sign “I stay calm. I love Ukraine».
“We are here to show that we are not afraid” : the Novosselski family comes to demonstrate in full with Zoriana, 7 years old, and Roma, 4 years old, who brandish pennants. Nonetheless, they take the threat seriously: they have now purchased fire extinguishers, flashlights and supplies, and have studied the plan of bomb shelters near their homes and jobs.
While singing the national anthem – “We will sacrifice soul and body for our freedom…”– the march starts at the foot of the red building of the Shevchenko National University and ends on Maidan, Independence Square, the center of two pro-Western revolutions in 2005 and 2014. The last led to the annexation of Crimea by Russia and the armed conflict in the East with pro-Russian separatists backed by Moscow.
“Who is Putin to tell us what to do?”
“Ukraine is united”, “Glory to the nation, death to the enemies”, “The Ukrainians will resist” , chant the protesters. On a poster #PutinWarCriminal (“Putin war criminal”), a portrait of the Russian president is surmounted by a question mark next to those of the former Iraqi dictators Saddam Hussein, Serbian Slobodan Milosevic and Libyan Muammar Gaddafi each crossed out. ‘a cross.
Other posters proclaim Ukraine’s membership of NATO while Vladimir Putin, who has massed more than 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border, demands from the West the guarantee that this will never happen to begin a de-escalation . “Who is Putin to tell us what to do?”protests Natalia Savostikova, a 67-year-old doctor, while Oleksii Tkatchenko, a 70-year-old pensioner, holds up a sign “to NATO immediately”.