Marion Gauthier, edited by Laura Laplaud
, modified to
10:52 a.m., January 29, 2022
As the United States continues to warn of a conflict that would be “appalling” for Ukrainians, President Emmanuel Macron and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreed on the need for de-escalation on Friday. But the tension remains high. The West accuses Moscow of having massed more than 100,000 soldiers at the border. Europe 1 went there.
The deployment of 8,500 American soldiers in Eastern Europe to deal with the risk of a Russian invasion in Ukraine could arrive soon, Joe Biden announced on Friday, thus maintaining pressure on Moscow. But the president of the United States affirms that the diplomatic way remains open. However, in Kiev, some Ukrainians, even far from the border, are preparing their belongings to evacuate. Our special correspondent for Europe 1 went there and met Olena, a forty-year-old who has already packed an “emergency bag”.
“You are never really prepared” for war
Two passports, socks, some medicine and enough to eat for a day or two… In the small backpack she leaves in evidence at the entrance to her home, each item has its place. “Preparing that bag and knowing it’s ready is the most important thing, taking things step by step gives you relief, it’s hard to think further,” she says.
To pack her bag, Olena relied on lists relayed by national media, the same media that constantly remind her of the tensions at the border. “It’s a roller coaster…”, she regrets. “When my mom and dad call me and ask me what to do, where to hide, I realize I have no place to put them to safety, and that stresses me out…War is something you you’re never really prepared.”
This is the second bag she is planning. The first was completed in 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Olena sighs and dreams of a life without these “emergency bags”.