2023-12-09 21:27:28
Saturday, December 9, 2023, 20:08 | Updated 8:27 p.m.
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kyiv has become a strange city. On the one hand, normality seems to have returned: bars and clubs have reopened and parties of all kinds take place inside, shops operate normally, and public transport is once again full at rush hour. On the other hand, the danger feels very close: the air raid sirens continue to howl when Russia attacks the capital of Ukraine with missiles or drones – the largest attack with the latter happened less than a month ago -, electrical installations often give up, making it difficult for the population to warm up when the mercury falls below zero, and the male population between 27 and 60 years old lives in fear of receiving a recruitment notification.
Civilians and soldiers pay tribute to the dead in kyiv. Zigor Aldama
It is a contrast that is often captured in a single image. For example, in those who enjoy a beer in front of the forest of blue and yellow flags that remember those who died in the war. Or in a social spark, when a uniformed soldier with the service weapon on his belt sits down to have a ‘frappuccino’ in a trendy cafe with his partner, dressed in luxury clothing and proudly showing off his ‘vareniki’ lips, like In Ukraine the result of a generous injection of botox is known. It is a booming operation among the elites, and fashion magazines like Elle consider it “a defiant act of feminine resilience.”
In this rarefied atmosphere, in which the curfew still fills the nights, the Ukrainian population is torn between boredom with a bogged down war that continues to exact a high human price and the fear that the West will share that sentiment and end up giving them the cold shoulder. back to the country. «Enthusiasm for offensives that managed to liberate cities like Kherson has faded. Now it is evident that our soldiers are not able to advance, and I fear that the social unity that the Russian invasion caused will fall apart,” says Oksana, referring to the political friction and social discontent that is beginning to spread among citizens. “Furthermore, with the fighting now centered in Donbas, many feel that the war has moved away from them and wonder if it is worth continuing to fight,” she adds.
It is impossible to forget about the war in kyiv. Zigor Aldama
It is not a popular opinion, but it is more widespread than the official patriotic narrative would have you believe. Victory is no longer taken for granted, and can be seen in the statistics of voluntary enlistments: the long lines that were seen at the beginning of the invasion, almost two years ago, are history. Now, most of the new recruits – Ukraine has mobilized a million people in total – come to the army by force.
«They are going to make minced meat with me»
And many fear becoming cannon fodder, because most have no experience or adequate training. So that they do not escape, Volodymyr Zelensky’s Executive has reinforced border control, and arrests are common – 6,000 just in front of Romania – as well as the discovery of the bodies of those who die in the forest or drown in the river trying to cross them. . The wealthy take less risk and bribe officials: between 500 and 10,000 euros, according to Reuters, for inventing a handicap or illness.
Dima, a 23-year-old computer programmer, has not volunteered to wield a Kalashnikov, but he will not try to avoid the feared recruiters who hand-deliver notifications on the street. «If they call me, I will go. At the moment, what I do is donate money to the Armed Forces,” he says from kyiv. He is convinced that if this war is not won by Ukraine, the only thing that will be achieved is to delay an inevitable confrontation. «If we don’t stop the Russians, we will have to fight again in the future. “This is demonstrated by what has happened to Crimea and Donbas,” he says, recalling that his father fought in Afghanistan and was convinced that now he would return to the front “with total conviction.”
A tank operator in Donbas. Zigor Aldama
At 51 years old, Oleksandr is not so clear. He suffers both the stress of being called up and the consequences of the fatigue that many in Europe are developing towards Ukrainians. Because he is a truck driver, and his Polish counterparts have declared war on him, accusing transporters like him of unfair competition. The protests at the border, which have forced Warsaw to ask for the reinstatement of the restrictions imposed on Ukrainian truckers before the war, have forced it to change routes and take its fish through Hungary, adding hundreds of kilometers to the trip to Lithuania.
«I feel that if they call me up they will make minced meat with me. I already served in the army of the Soviet Union, but the training we received was very limited. “We learned to drink and fight among ourselves, not to defend the country,” he recalls, emphasizing that he dedicated himself to chauffeuring officers. “Then I stole gasoline from them,” he adds jokingly. His opinion on the war has also changed. «It is a business between the United States and China, which are the ones who are now fighting for hegemonic power. And our politicians don’t care what civilians suffer,” he says.
The famous musician Taras Topolia during a military training session. Zigor Aldama
That last statement is shared by more and more Ukrainians. Zelensky’s figure has been eroded by the lack of progress. In fact, trust in his government has gone from 74% last year to 58% today. Yulia, a music teacher and mother of three children living abroad, did not vote for Zelensky, whom she considers “a perfect actor but a weak politician”, however she respects him “for not having abandoned the Ukrainians after the invasion” and Now she is forced to support him “because in war we have to be united.”
Furthermore, Yulia believes that now is not the time to hold new general elections, scheduled for March 31 next year, because “Zelensky is the one who must finish the job.” And, like many others, he considers that this means “recovering the territories occupied by Russia”, since negotiating an exit would mean “the death in vain of many people” and would leave Ukraine in a vulnerable position against future Russian attacks.
Dima is of the same opinion. «I support Zelensky and I will do so until the end. Now we must put aside our domestic problems. There will be time to stop them,” she says. But Ukraine is running out of men to wield a weapon, and Yulia herself recognizes that not everyone is good for it. «I don’t think my husband can even carry her. You cannot force people to join the ranks if they are not physically and mentally prepared. Without motivation, his brain will be blocked in the front. And without consensus on this matter, the first cracks are opening in Ukrainian society.
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