A Personal Account of a Member of the FIVA Culture Commission Living in Ukraine

Published: 08/03/2022

Following on from our news item on 1st March entitled 'FIVA - Solidarity for Ukraine' we have received a personal account from an active member of the FIVA Culture Commission Youth Group who is still living in the Ukraine.

We express no personal opinion, however in the interest of transparency we share Ivan's account with you...

My name is Ivan, I live in Kyiv, Ukraine. As you already know, quite recently, my country was attacked by the Russian Federation, which led to massive damage worth billions of dollars and thousands of casualties… 

By Tiddo`s asking, I prepared some answers to questions that might be of your interest. I hope you will find the experience I shared helpful and informative. 

First of all, how did it start? What`s my story? 
The invasion started on the 24th of March, in the middle of the night (~5 AM). We were awakened by explosions - these were rocket strikes at the airport a dozen kilometers away or so (imagine the power of this sound!!!). My father instantly reacted - got into a car and went to Kyiv (we live in Irpen) to pick up the rest of our family. Then we thought that being outside of big cities is much safer. We were in deep shock - everyone was talking about the possibility of war in the East of Ukraine, but no one expected the invasion to be so global and aggressive as it appeared!

Funny enough, my father did not succeed in his mission - when he was parking near our Kyiv apartment, he broke a tire. So I had to get a taxi for an insane amount of money to deliver a spare wheel! Then all together we reached Irpen, which was not easy - people were panicking and massively escaping the city, which led to traffic jams all over the exits from Kyiv. Then we finally reached our house. 

We didn`t know what to expect, so for 3 days had to constantly sit in the basement, which we used as a bomb-shelter. Some neighbors, 3 families joined our shelter and lived in our home for that period - our shelter was just the safest one in the neighborhood. 

However, the situation near Irpen was becoming worse and worse… We heard more explosions, more reports of casualties between civilians. We were obliged to leave our home, and first of all sent our women to the safest location - Germany to Frankfurt am Main, where our relatives (my aunt) live. And my father and I quite recently evacuated too - by that famous destroyed bridge (which is just 2 km from our house) to Kyiv and then - out of Kyiv district, to a village near Cherkassy city. Me and my father are legally not allowed to leave, so we have to stay in Ukraine for now. Currently both parts of our family are relatively safe and we are staying connected. 

Why did this war start? 

There is no logical explanation, no true reasoning of this terrible conflict. Ukraine didn't want any war and we didn't do anything mean for this war to occur. Russia is the agressor for the 3rd time - by occupation of Crimea, by starting conflict on Donbass, and finally by attacking us directly now. They do this to intimidate all the world, to show on our example that Russia is mighty and can beat up everyone who Putin dislikes. 

So, this conflict is forced, reasons for war are made-up. And the cost is too much to handle…

What is the character of this war? 
Our enemy - Putin and the Russian army expected swift blitzkrieg, fast and victorious war. But they didn't take in notice how brave and furious can Ukrainians be if assaulted. War united our people and now, as we say, “every bush will be shooting at them”! 

Russian`s plan is falling apart and that made them much more aggressive. They were saying ”this operation will not hurt civilians”, but at this moment more than 1200 civilian people got killed by the aggressor. Several thousands are wounded. Industrial, Infrastructure damage is beyond counting… 

Regarding losses the enemy has taken - they are catastrophic too! The Russian army has already lost more than 11-12 thousand of military personnel in total, hundreds of tanks, APC`s, artillery units, aircrafts and other sorts of vehicles. The reason for that is an advantage of defending Ukrainian army has, and also MASSIVE support of all kinds from Ukrainian people and our friends from Europe and other fellow counties

How could you help and what kind of support is important? 

Putin is threatening not only Ukraine, but the whole international community by the madness which is happening. There are reasons by which it might be dangerous for foreign countries to interfere directly, but you surely can assist us by other means. 

- Humanitarian help. In many countries of Europe (the Netherlands too) there are people, mostly Ukrainians, who are collecting donations in money and different useful things, cloth and food which will be delivered to Ukraine. It may be a bit safer to donate directly to organizations inside Ukraine, which work near the front. IF you wish, I could recommend some trustworthy ones. 

- Informational support. Assist in promoting the truth about this war and Putin`s mean actions. Inform yourself first, talk with Ukrainians who know the situation by their own experience. And share it between your local community, write in social networks, dispel the lies, spreaded by Russian propaganda, and convince other people to support Ukraine. 

Together we will definitely win!