2023-11-26 12:08:01
The event would now be almost routine: on November 18, more than a hundred gathered peacefully in front of Kiev town hall, placards in hand and Ukrainian flags wrapped around their shoulders. Every week since the end of September, demonstrators have repeated the same slogan: “Money for the army. » They directly target the municipality of the capital, accused of frivolous spending in a situation where soldiers often remain dependent on volunteer help to equip themselves.
While the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Valery Zalouzhny, spoke at the beginning of November of « impasse » of the military situation, a public debate muted in 2022 by the Russian invasion is regaining vigor. Several demonstrations, technically prohibited due to martial law, but tolerated, denounced the lack of information on the fate of missing soldiers, or called for an intensification of budgetary support for the army. All this against a backdrop of serial reshuffles within the armed forces, ordered by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
A controversy, not seen since the start of the war, saw a former MP from the far-right Svoboda party vilified for saying in an interview that she did not consider Russian-speaking Ukrainian soldiers to be real Ukrainians. Controversy also after opposition MP Oleksiï Hontcharenko affirmed, on November 6, that the presidential administration was preparing to hold a presidential election in March, an assertion denied the same day by Volodymyr Zelensky.
“The days of unconditional support are over”
“I believe that the president’s office is constantly preparing for elections, they are doing polls, they are thinking about eventualities, this is their normal operation, Judge Olha Aivazovska, director of Opora, Ukraine’s main election monitoring organization. The important thing is that there is a very broad consensus within society on the impossibility of holding a vote at present. »
Another sign of a weakened sacred union is the public disagreement between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Valeri Zaluzhny over the latter’s use of the term “impasse” regarding the military campaign.
“Zaluzhny is primarily focused on the military situation, the disposition of forces and its ability to accomplish its goals based on that,” judge Oleksiï Melnyk, former Ukrainian air force officer and analyst at the Razumkov Center, a Ukrainian think tank. “Volodymyr Zelensky is mainly concerned about external factors. It is obvious to him that without progress on the front line, our partners risk reconsidering their desire to support Ukraine. »
These differences in perspectives were expressed, until then, behind the scenes. Made public, they today reflect the fears of a society which has seen the prospect of a rapid victory gradually disappear.
The unconditional support for the authorities has in any case lived on. “ Those times are overlâche Oleksiï Hontcharenko. We remain united in our opposition to the enemy, but we cannot afford not to criticize the authorities. »
Ukraine is “a country of debate », explains Olha Aïvazovska. “We are not Russia. Today, war is part of daily life, it’s normal for people to start debating again and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. » A form of necessary safety valve, in a country still subject to enormous external pressure.
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Military aid to Ukraine
Since the start of the war led by the Russians in Ukraine, the countries supporting Kiev militarily have committed to paying at least 230 billion euros in military, financial or humanitarian aid, according to the latest report from the Kiel Institute (Germany), published on September 7 .
United States are by far the leading donors, with nearly 70 billion euros in aid announced, including 42 billion in military aid.
European Union countries announced both bilateral aid (47.11 billion euros) and joint aid from European Union funds (76.96 billion euros), making a total of 124.07 billion euros .
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