By Basil Kocur MD and Sophia Anna Kocur, BHS '18

April 27, 2022: On February 24th, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin shattered the peace in Europe by unleashing an unprovoked war on a democratic country of 44 million free Ukrainian people. Putin told the world that his goal was to "demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine," a country led by Jewish President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose family members were murdered in the Holocaust. He also claimed that Russians and Ukrainians are one people, denying Ukraine its long history that outdates Moscow by at least 300 years.

Sophia Anna Kocur, BHS '18

Basil Kocur

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine gained its independence and gradually veered toward the West. In November 2013, then pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych, pressed by Putin, chose not to sign a monumental agreement, vastly supported by Ukrainian citizens, which would have pushed Ukraine closer to the European Union. This act sparked uproar all over the country, specifically in Kyiv's Independence Square, or “Maidan”. Thousands of Ukrainians took to the streets in peaceful protest, which carried on into 2014.

Still under Putin's swift control, the Ukrainian government introduced a series of repressive laws that severely restricted civil society and the right to protest. Those who remained on Maidan risked assault and unlawful arrest. On January 22nd, 2014, one of the most violent days of the protest, over 100 civilians were shot to death in Kyiv by Yanukovych’s police. That following month, President Yanukovych fled the country and the Ukrainian parliament voted to hold new presidential elections. Russia retaliated by illegally annexing Ukraine's southern region of Crimea, triggering a rebellion in the eastern part of Ukraine, known as Donbas, and initiating an 8-year war that claimed 14,000 innocent lives.

On February 24, 2022, the West watched as Russian troops invaded Ukraine, again. Desperate for freedom, average Ukrainian civilians, who were once barbers, taxi drivers, and chefs, joined volunteer military units to stave off Russian troops around Ukrainian cities. For many of these volunteer soldiers, it was their first-time fighting.

Ukraine’s make-shift army held up against Russian forces far longer than expected. However, the war is intensifying quickly as Russian soldiers carry out truly barbaric, unnecessary, and unforgivable violence - shooting at civilians waiting on a bread line, bombing maternity wards and children's hospitals. According to the United Nations, 977 civilians have been killed, upwards of 1,500 injured, and nearly 10 million displaced, prompting the United States to officially accuse Russia of committing war crimes.

As Ukrainian-American members of the Bronxville community with relatives still in western Ukraine, my family and I are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of love and support as these atrocities, war crimes, and frank genocide against the Ukrainian people continues. Our world is facing a moment in time we thought was left in the past, a time my grandparents never thought they would see again. Yet, Ukrainians have proven time and time again that they are relentless in their fight for freedom. We hope and pray that democracy prevails.

If you would like to donate to provide relief to innocent civilians and wounded soldiers on the frontlines, the following agencies are reputable and verified: Revived Soldiers Ukraine (https://www.rsukraine.org), Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (https://ucca.org), Ukrainian-American Freedom Foundation (https://uaff.nyc), and Razom for Ukraine (https://razomforukraine.org).

Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the Heroes!

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