"As a foreigner living in Kyiv, I feel I need to say something uncomfortable. We need to stop repeating the narrative that Ukraine is resilient," writes Elsa Court, audience development manager at the Kyiv Independent, in this op-ed.
"Ukrainians shouldn't have to be resilient. If Ukraine's partners were to give the kind of support Kyiv continually begged for, civilians would not have to be suffering." https://t.co/fqV9Htvaxs
Read this text from Volodymyr Kukharenko to understand the everyday life of Ukrainian people:
I have not been on vacation for four years. I have had no business trips to establish new connections. Currently, I live and work about 70% of the time without electricity. I had to buy batteries. On average, every two weeks I wake up in the middle of the night to explosions. My children have spent hundreds of days sleeping outside their own beds. Some of my friends have been killed; others are on the front line. Some members of my team joined the army, and one of them was wounded. I’ve seen hundreds of videos and photos of destroyed homes, murdered people, torture and executions, and children’s funerals. I may end up in trenches myself.
Do I want the war to end? Of course I do. Much more than you — believe me. So why don’t I support the “peace plan” Trump is pushing?
Because one does not have to be a genius to understand that this plan would bring only a short pause before a much bigger war. If no one but Ukraine uses force to stop Putin, why would he stop? He will come up with another excuse for why his army must move further. And if he knows that neither the U.S. nor the EU will intervene, what will stop him?
I often hear the argument: “I just want people to stop dying.” I want that too — far more than you —b ecause I am one of those people. But if Ukraine withdraws without a fight from the cities in Donbas that it has fortified for years, why do you think that will save lives? About 300,000 people live there. They will either have to flee or stay and undergo “filtration,” which means many will be tortured and executed. Men will be forcibly drafted into the Russian army. And then that army will march further, forcing Ukrainians to kill Ukrainians. Tell me — how does that save lives?
It also means the Russian army will gain the ability to bomb territories that are currently safe. The war will not end. Ukraine will simply lose its fortress cities without a fight. Those who “just want to go home to their families” and support this idea will eventually find themselves fighting again — this time in even worse conditions.
And who says that if they go home, they won’t be quietly taken in the middle of the night and simply disappear? That would be the most logical thing for Russia to do if it takes over. Genocide is the only way to break a nation’s spirit. In the 1990s, they killed 25% of the Chechen nation. They killed millions of Ukrainians before. They killed in Bucha and Izium in 2022, and in other occupied cities — you can find the photos if you want. Why do you think they won’t repeat it?
There is nothing that would protect us from this scenario. That is why there is absolutely no reason for me to support this plan. We need peace — not the horrors of occupation.
I just watched a video of Ukrainian veteran Vladyslav Zadorin, who spent 22 months in a Russian prison. What he talks about is terrible; it is physical and mental torture on a daily basis. Please share this summary so that the world understands what kind of evil Russia is.
Russian missiles against our cities and people. The strike on Lviv killed 5 people, including a 14-year-old girl. My condolences go out to the families and loved ones of the victims. More than 30 people were injured. Ordinary residential buildings, schools, and medical facilities in the city were damaged.
In the Russian attack on Kryvyi Rih, 5 people were injured. Homes and civilian infrastructure were damaged. Our emergency services are on site, doing everything necessary to eliminate the aftermath of the attack. All the injured are receiving the required assistance.
Every one of our partners around the world who helps Ukraine with air defense is a true defender of life. Anyone who convinces partners to provide Ukraine with more long-range capabilities, enabling us to respond justly to terror, is working to prevent such Russian terrorist strikes on Ukrainian cities. Terror must be stopped.
Ukraine. Our land. Given by God. Kissed by the sun. Rocked by the winds. Tempered by fire. Defended by its sons and daughters.
It cannot be mistaken for anything else.
It can never be given away to anyone.
Happy Independence Day of Ukraine!
5. Correo literario, de Wisława Szymborska, en @Nordica_Libros y recomendado por @OAyuso
"Wisława Szymborska, tan reacia a hablar de su poesía, llevó durante años en la revista Vida Literaria lo que podríamos denominar un «consultorio de escritores»".
“I am not hungry for berries.
I am not hungry for bread.
But hungry hungry for a house
Where at night a man in bed
May never hear the plaster
Stir as if in pain.
May never hear the roaches
Falling like fat rain.”
З Новим роком! Будьмо!
“Bud’mo!” is a traditional Ukrainian toast, which means simply “Let us be!” It is a statement of intent — an expression of a basic right, which should be extended to all.
Sanguinetti captura los momentos espontáneos y cotidianos, pero también los momentos más difíciles del paso a la adultez, aquellos que chocan con los sueños que una vez concebimos cuando éramos niños (creando un mundo mágico y completo en si mismo).
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With all the horror happening in Palestine and Israel I hesitate to write with an update on Odesa, Ukraine. But if I don’t—who will?
While Russia continues bombing Odesa, we’ve been collaborating on a poetry studio for kids in Odesa.
«Si hoy tuviera que elegir en el mundo entero un guía espiritual, seguro que elegiría a Zorba. Porque él tenía la mirada primigenia que, de un flechazo, atrapa su presa en vuelo».
ℹ️«Zorba el griego», Nikos Kazantzakis: https://t.co/9FWsx3rbrZ
Trad. @selma_ancira
Less than 24h about to leave Vilnius, and still trying to understand why Lithuanians say this city has something different and magical. I guess the rumor spreads and stays in the brain.
My new Safe Skies fundraiser aims to spread the drone-detection system throughout the entire country. Millions of people would be shielded. Thousands of lives can be saved. 10/
https://t.co/WDFNRzH4t4