[ad_1]
This year Victory Day will not simply honor the surrender of Nazi Germany and the end of World War II, 77 years ago.
As Russia’s war in Ukraine moves toward the end of the third month, fears have grown in Europe of a greater confrontation. In Russia, pride and patriotism usually associated with the country’s most important holiday are mixed with concern about what this day might bring. While the Ukrainian president said that Russian aggression against his country ended 77 years of peace.
77 years after the end of World War II, Russian-initiated aggression in Ukraine has raised fears of a greater confrontation in Europe. As Russia’s war in Ukraine draws to a close in the third month, Ukrainian authorities are preparing for an expected intensification of Russian attacks ahead of Victory Day.
In an emotional speech, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said evil has returned to Ukraine. But he said Ukraine and its allies would win this war.
“Nothing bad can escape responsibility. Evil cannot be hidden in a bunker. So we will overcome everything. And we know this for sure, because our army and all our people are the descendants of those who defeated Nazism. Thus they will win again. “And there will be peace again,” said Zelenskiy.
Moscow calls the war a “special military operation” to disarm and “denationalize” Ukraine. This year’s Victory Day in Moscow is not just a day honoring the end of the conflict that ended 77 years ago.
In Red Square in Moscow, many residents are worried, but many do not speak for fear of retribution.
Sanctions imposed by Western countries after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched aggression in Ukraine on February 24 have plunged Russia into the worst economic crisis since the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Some Russians say they are concerned about what is happening in Ukraine given the close family ties between the two peoples.
“The war affects you emotionally, because I have two sisters living in Ukraine. “Of course, it is very difficult to communicate with them now, very difficult,” said a Moscow resident.
Russian opposition activists say the state media provide a partial picture of the conflict in Ukraine, manipulating what is actually happening.
For 97-year-old veteran Ivan Lisun, who has just lost his home in the small Ukrainian town of Zolochiv, to Russian bombing, there is little to celebrate.
The veteran, who joined the army when he was 18 and fought for the Soviet Union in Poland, Belarus and even reached as far as Germany, says he feels betrayed now that Russia has invaded Ukraine.
“I feel very bad now because I served in the Soviet Union for seven years. Defending whose homeland? Russia or Ukraine? What is happening now is more shameful than before. Since Putin became president, everything has gotten worse. How can you humiliate people like that? “Even here in Kharkiv”, says the 97-year-old veteran.
Diplomatically, Pope Francis on Sunday reiterated his call for peace in Ukraine and urged leaders to listen to people “who love peace and know full well that weapons never bring it.”
Speaking during Sunday prayers, he called on Catholic believers gathered in St. Peter’s Square to pray for peace “in the face of the madness of war.”
Britain will help Ukraine with another 1.3 billion pounds of aid, while to reiterate support for the government of Kiev, the Speaker of the German Parliament, Baerbel Bas visited the Ukrainian capital.
In a video conference attended by the Ukrainian president, G-7 leaders will discuss Russian aggression and ways to help Ukraine.
The leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Germany and the United States have pledged billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine./VOA
top channel
[ad_2]
Source link
