War in Ukraine. Stop this madness

I have never expected to be writing about war. To be talking about war, thinking about it, worst of all — to be seeing it with my own eyes. Not in a movie, a video game, or a book. But the war is here — in my country, in Ukraine, in Europe. It makes no sense. I dream of waking up and realizing it was all just a nightmare. But no such luck. What is going on, people? How did we let this happen? The coronavirus has paled into insignificance with the war on.

We all remember World War II, via books and films. We thought we had learned its lesson, ensuring security in Europe and the world. No more Hitlers. But here he is, big as life and twice as ugly: a new Hitler. And he’s doing the same things. Sure, he’s acting smarter and not saying anything about Jews. But we all understand what is going on. On the first day of war, an artillery shell hit the city of Uman. Why? What for? There are no military installations in Uman, nothing that can be justified by Putin’s tenuous concept of a “NATO threat.” Why would you shell a small peaceful town? One person was killed and five were injured. It was a symbolic act. It was the beginning. Now the Russian troops are indiscriminately annihilating everything in their path. They are killing Ukrainians, Jews, even fellow Russians. Bombs and missiles do not differentiate. They are destroying my country, and I cannot keep silent.

War is not a video game. No game will make you feel such emotions. Anger, shock, rage, confusion. Someone has invaded your land to kill and destroy. And it’s happening today, in the 21st century. Dehumanization, indiscriminate brutality, ferocious hatred. All the progress humanity has made in the last few decades… where is it? We’ve been thrown back to medieval savagery. A small detail struck me for some reason. Putin, or whoever gave the order, bombed Feldman’s zoo in Kharkiv. It was a small and beautiful ecopark. Cute animals, flowerbeds, paths… What have the poor animals done to deserve it? Were they a threat to Russia? This is what I would personally ask of Putin: why did he destroy Feldman Ecopark?

So this is how the war began — with small crimes committed by Putin and his regime. Now the crimes are huge and unforgivable. Worse still, it’s not over yet. Ukrainian cities are still being attacked. Buildings and infrastructure are still being destroyed. Civilians are still being slaughtered. An environmental disaster is looming. Didn’t Putin say he would only target military objectives? That was a lie. Never trust Putin. Russian troops are firing at civilians, they are destroying our homes. And those aren’t stray missiles. It’s being done deliberately. My parents live in Kharkiv, in a quiet neighborhood with nothing even remotely military in nature located within three kilometers. There’s a children’s playground surrounded by residential buildings. A missile hit it, and its thankfully unexploded tail is sticking out of the ground beside a slide. Thank God there were no children at the playground when it fell. What is it, Mr. Putin? Why is it? Why did you fire a rocket at the playground beside my home?

There’s a flipside to every situation. Even this war has its positives. We are witnessing unprecedented human solidarity. The mutual support and assistance are incredible. Crisis makes us all show our true faces. Some people display generosity and heroism. Others turn out to be cowards or scumbags. It’s amazing. War is revealing. It shows who your friends and enemies are. We see the countries that are helping us. We see others who are refusing or sabotaging assistance and we ask ourselves: why? Many of them have been intimidated by Putin and his mob. We do realize that, too. Nothing is simple in this world.

This war is very similar to World War II, but there’s one huge difference. Today’s war is one of information. Prevailing in the information realm is almost tantamount to winning. The new Hitler is victorious in the minds of those who read the news, watch videos, and look at photos. Putin is investing insane amounts of money to spread his lies and misinformation. His bot armies are operating in nearly every country, spamming social media and public forums, publishing fakes and propaganda. Putin is powerful, but common sense and a critical attitude to information are more powerful still. I always watch and read reports from both sides of the conflict to work out the “middle ground” and find the truth from among the gigabytes of lies. And no, I don’t think Russians are monsters. They are average, normal people, and I have great friends in Russia. They do not support Putin, his war, his insanity. But there are plenty of others who have been brainwashed by propaganda.

I don’t believe in the idea that every nation gets the government it deserves. Germans did not deserve Hitler, and nor do Russians deserve Putin. Any nation can fall under the yoke of tyranny and cronyism. They’re like fleas on a cat. And they must be fought. We must speak out, as loudly as possible! Ukraine is deeply grateful to Britain, the United States, and many other countries for their unprecedented support and assistance. We are grateful to everyone who understands what’s going on and helps in whatever way they can. It’s fantastic how our small Ukraine is resisting the monstrous leviathan. But we wouldn’t be able to do it without your help. Thank you!

This war is actively being fought via cyberattacks. The Russians have attacked the servers not only of the Verkhovna Rada and military agencies but also power companies. This is especially dangerous. It threatens Europe and the entire world. There are four nuclear stations in Ukraine. If the Russians are foolish enough to attack them, the consequences will be devastating for all of us. Someone, please stop these madmen!

Violence will never achieve anything. In his attempt to destroy Ukraine, Putin has accomplished the exact opposite: Ukrainians are united as ever, and the whole civilized world has come to our aid. Everyone is doing what they can. Some people are helping with information, reporting enemy troop movements; others are destroying the aiming marks left by Russian agents on roadways and rooftops. Some are sending money transfers, helping refugees, donating blood. Others are countering cyberattacks or fighting Russian trolls online. The new Hitler has no chance.

We are all fighting. We are all one clenched fist. The entire civilized world stands with Ukraine. You might not know anything about our country, Ukraine. Maybe you’ve never visited it as a tourist. It’s very beautiful… or it used to be, before the Russian invasion and the bombings. But I believe that we will expel the forces of destruction and bring peace back to Europe. We will rebuild everything that was destroyed. And you will come and see the majesty of the Dnipro, the Carpathian Mountains, and my beloved city of Kharkiv. It will be as peaceful and beautiful as ever.

Glory to Ukraine! This is our national slogan. We have faith in people, faith in a happy and benign world where there’s no place for mad dictators and bloody regimes.

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