Three days before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine I was moderating a lunch in Munich of yes and General Petraeus who is on the panel here with me today was on the panel at this lunch and I said to him what is the most important thing for you right now this was before
The terrible Invasion had happened and he said to me the big question is if there is a Russian attack the main question is will ukrainians fight well we now know the answer to that question the heroism the determination the effectiveness The Bravery with which the men and women on this
Stage and so very many others have defended their country is something that I think all of us all of us around the world are standing in awe and admiration of it’s been extraordinary but it is still ongoing it is still a long way from the end it
Is ongoing and so now 18 months on I’m going to have a conversation with these remarkable men and women about why they fight what are they fighting for I think it is important that we hear directly from them not from our leaders in the west not from our people but from
The people of Ukraine and particularly the heroes of Ukraine and I’m going to briefly introduce them first immediately to my left to your right is Dennis zykov he is currently fighting yesterday he was at the front next to him yes [Laughter] [Applause] next to him is Dimitri finashin an
Intelligence officer of the National Guard of Ukraine and a hero of Ukraine too welcome [Applause] next to himself also I mean a soldier in the armed forces of Ukraine thank you for being here [Applause] next to him is Mercy name he’s the founder of the Miller law firm
But also a military officer he was at the front of the Armed Forces of Ukraine thank you for being here and next to him is alira michalova she is a military paramedic and a volunteer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine thank you for being here and last
But not least is the man who posed that question to me General Petraeus but before before we have that conversation I’m delighted to say that we are going to hear from the new minister of defense who is coming here in his first public appearance his second day third day of being minister
And thank you for making the time [Applause] and and I would like to say that the minister is going straight from here to the front line so thank you for being here and Minister may I invite you to make some remarks first [Applause] dear colleagues dear Heroes their distinguished guest it’s an honor
For me to be present here uh one million ukrainians today are in the Ukrainian Defense Forces among them more than 800 000 are Ukraine Armed Forces our army today is one of the biggest strongest and most motivated in the world because we know what we fight for for our people for our homes
For our freedom two days ago I was entrusted by Ukrainian president ulo De Mer zelensky to become Ukraine’s defense minister I’m grateful to Mr President for the trust this is a huge honor and huge responsibility for me to hold this position in this historical and crucial times for Ukraine
Mr President said yesterday and I share the same values the highest priority for us today is our Warriors their lives safety dignity we have to introduce a new philosophy of attitude to Warriors my responsibility as a minister of defense is to make everything possible and impossible to ensure that our
Warriors are provided and equipped with everything necessary weapons military equipment uniforms means of personal protection food medicines Health Care education human resources and recruiting even burial ceremonies will release all our children all our prisons of Wars political prisoners civilians we will bring everyone back home we have to ensure respectful soldiers
Dignity in all interactions with the state this also includes digitalization there is no place for bureaucracy and paperwork for the Army in the war everything has to be digitized and we will take care of cyber security next point is weaponry we need it today we need it now we need it more
I take this opportunity to address our International partners we’re stronger together we’re grateful for all the support provided but we need to continue our war Coalition efforts to win this war we need more heavy Weaponry heavy weaponry and again heavy weaponry Ukrainian Warriors today are sacrificing their lives for the core values of
Democracy and freedom they need backup from your site their partners and this backup is weapons our focus is to strengthen existing cooperation and expand geography to establish new Partnerships and coalitions because our aim is a victory strategy our ministry is a key institution responsible for forming the strategies and policies in defense
Our new National Security and defense strategy of Ukraine is based on the victory doctrine of the president of Ukraine and new challenges and realities our goal is to become a NATO member no doubt that this day will soon come hopefully and dear colleagues we have big challenges ahead and big opportunities ahead
Every day we advance and every day we make our Victory closer Ukraine will win glory to Ukraine slav Ukraine [Applause] thank you thank you Minister thank you for those remarks you were kind enough to say that I could ask you a couple of questions so I’m
Going to the you said in your remarks just now that we need a new philosophy of attitude to Warriors what do you mean by that everything comes from Human Rights and it’s a right of a warrior to be equipped to be having everything for the war and to win the war so which
Means that what I’ve addressed in our speech and philosophy that life is important a person is important we will win in this war we will buy everything necessary with equipment we don’t care about it we we focus on uh human lives we focus on our people so those are the
Things that we would have to focus on and that’s why as a Ministry of Defense we will be probably introducing a new position called military Ombudsman that will be focusing to the military needs of the people and our Warriors you addressed your foreign Partners you said you need more heavy Weaponry heavy
Weaponry having weaponry and then you said you are seeking to strengthen existing cooperation expand geography new Partnerships and coalitions can you elaborate on that sure our main goal is NATO membership and we are in a very tough neighborhood we see that the Black Sea is also
Encircling by the enemy so we think that Baltic Sea Black Sea Caspian Sea Adriatic Sea is our uh priorities in this region and who would be looking not only to the regional expansion but also to the Thematic expansion which means that we have we need the support in Navy
We need a air defense we need artillery so we need to uh make additional correlations I.T Coalition as I said here defense Coalition so that’s our expansion dimension thank you very much I would love to ask you more questions but you must get to the front line thank you for joining us
Thank you thank you very much [Applause] now we turn to those of you who are serving to the Heroes of Ukraine and I want to ask each of you what you are fighting for and mercy I’d like to start with you because you have The Misfortune of
Having met me before and so if you’ve met me before then you know that I can ask you the first question so could you tell us because you’ve told me before very eloquently what it is that you are fighting for yeah I will speak Ukrainian regrettably but
For me this is a very fortunate then you’re right that those who are talking about war there’s a lot of high quality in all this luckily I don’t have such words I cannot say that I’m waging the wolf for the sake of new values I want revenge I want revenge in the most
Horrific way that the international conventions would allow the more Russians die the better it is as a combatant and you know I still have the right to kill Russians and this is what I want most of all why this is my next message I want to do this because
Russia has taken away many people from us I want not to be ashamed before them I want my friends who have not been mobilized not to be mobilized I’m not among those who say you all have to go to war I want to do all I can so that you don’t
Go to war I want most of the people on this planet to survive and I also wage a war you know my my father was the doctor of philosophy when I asked him about what freedom is he said this is when you have the right to choose when we talk about
Independent Ukraine I do not say that we are totally independent we depend on our friends we’re depend on how their help but this was our choice whether we depend on Russia and share their system of coordinates or whether we depend on our International partners and I want to retain this choice
To have the opportunity to choose the way of life that I want to lead and I want the rules of the game be here and that this is determined by the force of law not by the law of force as they do this in Russia and this is everything
That I waged the war for and I’m very sorry for not having said something that would provoke you to say yes you are a hero but you know there’s a lot of bad things happening in the war usual people average people die there and every wounded person is
Wounded until the end of their lives and everyone who has died won’t say anything and unfortunately there’s a lot of high quality sayings about war but this is kind of a swing which swings from bad to worse and from if we say that we all are heroes this won’t bring back to life
Some of us it’s a powerful and an important point to make um dimitro Can I Turn to You Next and I’m going to ask you the same question what it is what is it that you have made such a clear sacrifice for eign this war has been broken into four
Stages that I was not thinking about before this was an accident for me something like the fight for my family for my home but then I understood realized that there are four steps one the first was the territorial Integrity of our country during the anti-terrorist operation in 2014 I went to join the
Troops but I was not able to join the fighting because not everything depends on the will of a soldier then I went to the front and by that time the major aim for me was Justice because by that time too many people have died in the war and the
Goal was to bring Russia to responsibility you know you want some justice but if you cannot bring the culprits to the dock then the only way is to wash this with blood on the battlefield that’s what we’re doing now the third stage was the full-scale war launched on the 24th of February is
The price became the existence of the Ukrainian nation and the Ukrainian state something extraordinary happened then as far as the unification and joining forces of the people is concerned we saw how the nation becomes awake and how people gather to defend their country and for me now this is probably more the
War for democracy and freedom but yes it does remain to some extent revenge and bring into responsibility because yes Russia is violating international law and yes we have to win our Victory and gain Justice because people who are dying now are the most passionary people they are the flower of our nation our
Sons and daughters who would be forming the face of our country but they are not with us anymore and you know because they die the people who remain are there’s more among them of those who are not as passionate about Ukraine we are at the moment fighting for the democracy all over the
World and we are working fighting against the global terrorists who tries to put their claws into everything so please help us help us thank you Can I Turn to You Next you were an MP uh you then became a soldier you’ve been fighting what is it that you are fighting for
You know the question what I’m fighting for I was asking myself after several months of the war despite the fact that I was in the armed forces from the very first day but you know when the armed forces are on the pencil you don’t ask yourself such things you’re just doing
Your business your military business my mom is now in Italy and she called me and she complained that Italians are asking them her why does your son why he’s at War and what he is fighting for and mom called me and tried to ask me what she should answer and I told her
Don’t tell them how would Italians behave if they were attacked you should more talk more about the specific countries situation that we are in and how you would behave if your towns and your schools in my native town of the parks so Kindergartens were destroyed your neighbors were wounded your women
Would be raped how would you behave do you have something that you would fight for and of course there’s there is something because you see with your own eyes how your city is being destroyed and raised to the ground they remember very clearly how when the Russians have withdrawn from
I was going there traveling there and I remember very clearly that I was asking myself why am I going there I was not summoned there but then I understood that I had to be in a deal because my native town I had what to defend there but within the 18 months
I did start to feel deeper senses yes we are fighting for our people you are fighting for our near and dear but recently I have become aware that ukrainians are fighting for their right to be happy we have been unhappy for so long that now when they are destroying Values and our cities we understood that if we do not defend our freedom then without Freedom we would be unhappy and if I’m not mistaken in 2020 2019 at the Alta European strategy we were talking about happiness I do not remember the details but I remember one important thing that ukrainians uniquely
Were different from other nations in that for that moment they were feeling unhappy but they believed that they will be happy in the future and this is our chemistry this uniqueness is our chemistry we understand this is the situation is very bad now but we have to
Withstand and to sustain it in order to be happy or make or May at least make happy our children and our grandchildren and our families and the last thing is and by the way people on the front line are thinking about this maybe we’re not defended just our rights and or
Happiness but we are defending also the happiness of other nations let me now turn to you and I think you have been most recently of everyone even here you have come from the front line tell us first where you have come from right now hello everybody I am captain psycho I
Represent the 25th detached uh Airborne Division yesterday I was on a combat Mission uh on Spotify Direction as I am here I cannot but use this moment to thank our foreign colleagues on behalf of the command of my Brigade and everyone there please accept my words of gratitude for your help and the
Support that we get from you thank you no but let’s go back to the question what we are fighting for for me personally the war started back in 2014. I have been serving in the armed forces for 10 years almost six years I’ve been fighting in the front line This is
Rather difficult and many I have lost many friends however I think that the goal the aim of this war which we have to attain is our free Ukraine our state our land our values and of course we have to remember and mention our relatives our families and first of all
Our children I do not want my children or children of anyone who’s here see what the eyes of these heroic people who are sitting beside me have seen thank you Alina Karina turned to you and ask you the same question because these are all incredibly Powerful Answers from all of
You what is it that you are fighting for eign glory to Ukraine glory to the heroes I will On this part of the moment I did not prepare any speeches and I would not be using um High flown vocabulary to discuss what we are fighting for it is quite natural we are there because we and and even when we understand that we can be killed at
Any moment we’re still there on the 18th of February 20 21 uh 22 I spoke in Munich saying that we are about to be in a war we need our moment we need equipment we need to put up resistance to Ukraine and in a couple of days they
All out or started and I joined my unit and even though I had served as a volunteer for three years before it was the 24th of February 2023 that made it for real and so I joined my unit in abdifka and later on we were called up
To the Armed Forces of Ukraine and I joined the regular army I’ve been there for uh 18 months now or which I visited home say for 20 days not longer why uh have I opted for this way why am I still say over the year and a half of this war
A lot has changed a lot has changed in my life particularly things that I mentioned on the 18th of February 2022 because we could never imagine what the scale of this war could be that an aircraft would be dropping bombs on civilians nobody could have ever fathom that Russia has
Started that war and it continues to commit such atrocities and I now have a whole body of evidence that today Russia is not punished for what it’s doing for the atrocities that they’ve committed so far as I warned back in early February 2022 when Oscar fighting for yeah I can tell you that
I really sorry I can start crying now I really really realized that sorry that’s why I didn’t want to speak from this stage when I lost a very dear person quite recently um beloved Da Vinci was killed at the front line that’s why she’s speaking over this uh
Was also our commander and he had been fighting until he was killed since 2014 and I always ask him how come that you persevere where do you get all this strength and uh stamina but he said if I stopped fighting Russia will be here no matter what it is in Ivana francese
Where he was from Kiev Ori were fighting together only upon losing this man who I loved immensely who I shared a lot with did I understand people inhibited million we’re all orphaned I was there just for the sake of one man this man I wanted to be by
Him I wanted to be his rep left right hand I wanted to be with him all the time I I knew that we would be supporting one another and now every man and woman at the front line which needs someone to fight for it could be their family members it could
Be somebody who would not drop their eyes when they see a person in the uniform they would not evade hard discussions with soldiers veterans with disabilities was amputated limbs it is essential for all of us to understand why men and women are there are fighting every minute attacking small woodlands in harkiv
Obelisk or say a ravine in um so I want all of you to be fair and to be frank with your own hearts and conscience you should understand why they are there we can be discussing values democracy things like this but there are very basic things they have been articulated
Very clearly and that would be either a person you hold a dear a person who’s waiting for the soldiers and the front line or and stranger in the street who would come up to you and say thank you that’s very important these are very Salient things this is what people are
Laying their lives we are suffering huge casualties there’s no romanticizing battle war it is dirty it is nasty and bad I’ve been um fighting for almost five years now and during the restoration at the kupiansk access it was for the first time that I was prepared to give everything out
In order for my Battalion to survive because what we are witnessing and the front line today is what unfortunately you would not learn from the newsreels from the news feeds from newspapers or TV reports some of the recent pieces of legislation feel like slap on the face uh to the
Military uh men and women there at the front lines we should all contribute as members of the Armed Forces as volunteers as those who work in the real those who understand that our veteran veterans with disabilities are people we have to be supportive some things that Victory would come very soon now it
Won’t not today not the day after not in a year even for us to achieve Victory we all have to unite to be as one very strong fist and we should work together in the armed forces in relations between the armed people and civilians in overcoming political bickering and things like this
You have to that is survive we have to go through these hot ships but for that we need all to realize why our armed forces are there why we should persevere Against All Odds because that’s exactly what we are doing our people are fighting there heroically
I mean it they understand that but for them Russians would be in cave in no time and every time you go to bed every night you should remind yourself um how hard it is to them there yesterday I slept in my bed for the first time in a
Long time and I said I’m not in the front line I can keep calm Russians are not here they won’t be here either tomorrow or in a month but if those who are on the front line now retreat but then perhaps we would have to face
Russians at our doorstep here in Kiev I will repeat myself yet again this question is asked of us we all know why we are there but I would appreciate if all of you here in this room and Beyond could ask this question of yourselves and answer it honestly thank you
Thank you Alina thank you to all of you listening to all of you but listening to you particularly I I found myself asking the question you were asked where do you get your strength from but in hearing all of what you said you have all given different reasons different reasons from
The sake of one man the sake of your families the right to be happy the right to defend Freedom the right to choose the rule of law and not the law of force there have been highfalutin answers as you put it Marcy there have been honest answers they are all extraordinarily
Powerful I want to come back to ask all of you some more questions but first David Petraeus you’ve you’ve led many people into into battles I suspect you are moved perhaps not quite as much as I am because you’re more experienced at this but quite considerably when you hear all of this
When you hear these extraordinary Testaments and explanations and heartfelt assessments of why Ukraine is fighting what does it make you feel first of all I think I’m actually moved even more if commanders never get hardened to casualties in fact it gets tougher and tougher and tougher yes you can learn
How to control that but what you’ve seen is so inspirational and it’s why it is such a privilege to wear the uniform ones Nation I was privileged to do that for over 37 years I was privileged to serve with innumerable Heroes during that time including those that I was privileged to command and
Five combat commands in two different Wars um and I just want to tell each of you here what a tremendous honor it is to be on stage with each of you with these Heroes and above all to be able to express to you how much admiration all those around
The world have for you and for those that you represent um and frankly for your family members and for the citizenry of this country which has truly mobilized the entire country for its War of Independence all of Ukraine especially though clearly those in uniform have demonstrated incredible courage extraordinary service and tremendous sacrifice
And I want you to know Alina I didn’t realize we were going to be on stage together today but the group that I’m here with in Ukraine each of us later Rose at the grave of Da Vinci yesterday afternoon and it was a very moving experience
Um I should note by the way you know you threw out the question that I asked at Munich at that wonderful event that Victor uh always hosts but it was particularly meaningful uh two years ago and then last year and thank you for hosting this as well uh we all applaud
You uh for what you have done in so many different ways Victor but I believed I knew the answer to the question will they fight but I still needed to ask it because that was going to be the biggest uh question that would be answered I’d been to the front I’d
Been to the to Don bass previously I had seen how far Ukrainian forces had come since 2014 all of the additional professional expertise weaponry and so forth and I was very confident that ukrainians would fight in fact I was one of the very rare people who said prior to the invasion that if
Russia does invade I don’t believe they’ll take achieve much less topple the government and do what everybody else was saying all the way up to the nepro or something like that and it would be a guerrilla War um again that was based on my assessment but the truth is that what ukrainians
Have done has been vastly greater than that obviously you fought brilliantly tenaciously uh incredible determination uh impressive adaptation inspiring the entire world tremendous expertise and also again with extraordinary uh courage and you’ve heard some of that here I do want to talk a tiny bit about the question that you have posed though
Because I think there actually are two questions and I pondered this an awful lot over the years including one time when I was privileged to lead what we believe was the largest re-enlistment ceremony in U.S military history 1215 Soldier Sailors Airmen Marines in Baghdad at the end of The Surge
Reenlisting hand in the air I was the real Lisbon officer and I’m is asking myself why are they doing this they’ve been in combat this time 15 months straight and done it again and again and they’re volunteering to serve again and I think there are two questions here one is why does someone
Volunteer to serve and then actually why do you fight when you’re in tough combat and I think there’s a little bit of a distinction we’ve heard the answers really to both of these but I want to make that distinction a little bit you serve because it is a mission greater
Than self an extraordinary privilege to help preserve your country’s very Independence it’s survival its way of life and all of that but you fight in tough combat I think and we might go back and ask this question when it really is tough on the front lines in the Brotherhood of
The close fight as it’s called which includes women as well as men of course you fight for those who are on your right and left because you have Fierce determination not to let them down and that I think is another element of this that is hugely important you heard
That where Elena is describing not wanting to let her commander down wanting to serve him wanting to be his left and right hand wanting to that element of this that small unit where the fighting is really done is something that is truly extraordinary and again that’s why we describe this as the
Brotherhood of the close fight which I believe is the most elite Fraternity in the entire world thank you thank you that’s I think that’s a very important distinction General um that the why you serve and and what what you are fighting for when you are
In as I said I can only imagine in in close combat I wanted to ask the heroes here on this panel though a different question and I’m sorry that it’s a slightly more difficult subject but you have all given incredibly powerful reasons for why you are fighting
But not everyone in your country is at the front many people are not at the front I’m here back in here for the first time since late March last year when it was a city under siege and the Russians were just still in Butcher and other places and
Now it feels like a vibrant City with cafes with normal life and I wanted to ask you how you feel about that and whether you feel that you have the full support of your country in one sense it is incredibly United but how do you feel people who are at the front about
Whether the effort of the whole of your Society is with you and Diego I might start with you because you were an MP you understand the importance of of popular support which is clearly there don’t get me wrong it is clearly there the popular support but how do you feel
When you come to Kiev now and you see the city as it is foreign when I lost my second eye I thought that I would never be confused or taken for my brother but this still confused me I was never in a parliament you said that
I was in a parliament I wasn’t I don’t think I was addressing Massey the question to you but maybe my my I I was addressing it Diego yeah but that’s okay we can hear from YouTube we can take it and turns to answer this question why don’t you start
First place in the first place for me this is a constant the Russians want us to continue suffering if someone isn’t suffering in Ukraine despite the war and the losses and bereavements that they are causing then you are doing what the Russians don’t want from you so you have
Um carousing your drinking this is wonderful this is the best efficiency that the Ukrainian armed forces are demonstrating but you know your first question and this question they Echo I keep asking myself a question why do you keep asking us this it seems to me that you during this panel discussion asked
Us about the sense of why we are fighting in this war you know why I think that you are lost yourselves this is a question has become really a cute question it’s so nonsensical you’re not asking me here what kind of a day it is whether it’s a
Day or a night you know that this is definitely a day but I understand that you’re confused and behold and I know why you are asking us for sure you know if you get go to ask me right now what I am experiencing I could tell you
So many more in different insights but you’re not asking me that you are lost you’re confused and you want to get some support from us you want us to support you and say to you you will handle it because you are the civilian Society come on you can
Handle it but the question that you are asking us whether this support is sufficient for us you’re asking because perhaps you are feeling guilty in a way feeling at fault maybe the majority of you are you feeling that this girl just because you’re not fighting on the front
Line let’s be frank perhaps the majority of you are feeling at fault for that feeling guilty for not fighting but I can tell you honestly that for me this support is not enough the support of the government because my guys are dying I’m looking for money for my unit I’m fundraising I
Keep calling different clients of my Law Firm to make sure that they can help us one UAV that we require right now costs 670 000 produced by EOS made in Estonia recently it was damaged and the repair work costs 17 000 and I’m looking to fundraise for it is this okay
This is definitely not okay but you’re helping anyway so what is my point having parties and relaxing this is very good but this is a long pathway and this will not result in winning this war in a year or two years time I will probably surprise you no victories will come in
Five years for us it’s impossible claiming our nuclear weapons from Russians in five years this is definitely not impossible this is a a war for much longer much longer than I would have probably thought to myself recently I fell in love and I caught myself thinking I like the country of
Turkey perhaps one day I will go to her with her to Turkey but I will never go to Turkey with her not in a year or in two years time I won’t be able to Simply so my point is we need to learn to be happy during the war
Not just because of feeling guilty just to make sure that your nearest and dearest your children don’t get to go to this war this is what matters because right now you’re doing it as if I you owe it to me or you’re always yeah let’s just face it you’re looking
At us the military and you’re fearful that one day we’ll throw it in your face and say what are you up to what are you busy doing I won’t do it because I love ukrainians I love people I will never begin to refuse the society saying what
Are you busy dealing with and doing of course inwardly I’m so wrenched that my friends are dying or have died but I’m not going to rebuke my Society just because I want you to help out of the feeling of guilt I know you I know and
You say a lot of very powerful things but there are many other here what’s this question well the question actually I was do you feel when you are here and Kiev do you feel that you are having enough support in that was my the question I asked him
I said you but I’m actually going to rephrase it for you slightly which is what is the kind of society you would like your country to be that you are fighting for now what are the changes you would like to see what is the new kind of Ukraine that you are fighting for
It it seems to me these are two pretty different questions and of course the answers will definitely there is so let me be brief the first point honestly when I come to Kiev I feel so happy good I’m ecstatic to see peace over our heads and it would be probably surprising to
Come to Kia and to see that there are lots of holes in the ground and there are different kinds of missiles shelling above us Etc this is the first point the second point this is the sentence for the sake of which we are fighting on the
Front line we are so aware acutely aware that if we are fighting there on the front line here we are ensuring peace so this is not in vain this is already gaining getting some extra weight to our mission and in answer to your question what kind of society we are lacking
The society that we have is quite enough for me because I’m getting support from the society but generally and mercy has just raised a very important point because I’m a commandant of a salt uavs the unit all of the uavs that we have been using they have been our uh drones
I mean your drones in fact the people that are journalists who have been donative media people contributing to fundraising for these uavs therefore I don’t have anything to claim against the society on the contrary it’s been helping us substantially I have some questions to ask in the face of the
Government because in a way you know we are also fighting for the sake of the state of the government because this government wouldn’t still be staying standing if we were not fighting for it and sometimes they Frankly Speaking the government is under delivering I’m not fighting with drones just because I want
It but I use drones because I understand that uavs can definitely help me to destroy different armored vehicles different kinds of Machinery equipment and personnel and just make a millimeter this Victory come closer to us so I don’t have any questions to put against the society or throw in the face of the
Society and I’m so happy to see the society and in the way that it is but I definitely have some questions to throw in the face of the government dimitro we’ve talked about the society here we’ve talked about the government here and you have all thanks or several
Of you have thanked your Western Partners but what is your um message to your Western Partners it it sounds as though you all think this could be a long War it will take time what is your message in terms of the need to sustain and stick the course to keep going dimitro
You know we can revert to your previous question in a way by virtue of the fact that other Society is getting tired we are suffering from this fatigue and the Ukrainian selves kind of burning out they get entitled the Ukrainian War let alone foreigners so with other people living abroad of
Ukraine of course the government’s rulers or military command they can handle that but for average ranking file citizens it can be so difficult to comprehend that because you always understand that your pain always pains you so much more than someone else’s pain I would advise ukrainians to keep living relaxing
Replenishing your energies but still do not forget about your military these things have to be combined you cannot live separately these things have to be United merged into one of the same girls for the whole world we are enduring an unprecedented level of support and everyone seems to
Understand that if you have said a you have to say B everyone has to continue playing this game it’s impossible to back out everyone understands what the end game is so I don’t think that we are going to have this support withdrawn from us it will
Be just growing but right now it’s up to our partners to keep explaining to their societies that this matters not only for Ukraine but it matters for the whole world and that’s the work that they have to do you have to do a train to convey to every citizen in your
Respective countries and just like I said yes you have to continue helping and that’s what you have been doing and ultimately thank you very much indeed but we still require it so much more Dennis you you started uh in your remarks thanking your Western partners
For the help for your for your unit uh would you also like to leave a message because there will be many watching about the need to stay the course thank you for your question the support for the military at this point is an indelible part of the war that we are suffering from
And waging right now under the current circumstances because there reserves and the resources that we had before the beginning of the full-scale invasion and before the war in 2014 we’re still short of different resources because ukrainians are a resourceful kind of nation and we like macgyvering whatever
You may give it to us we will know we’ll come up with the way how to apply it perhaps differently and in a witty way just like my colleague has said keep giving and keep giving more and we will handle it because we have been well
Trained we know how to do it in the first place we opted for this pathway ourselves thank you Alina you were so eloquent in explaining what the war was for could you just what what was what it meant to you could you briefly tell us what for you as victory um
It’s a pretty tricky question for me um because the victory which I imagined for myself outlined before the 24th of February 2022 because for me the war and for us was started back in 2014 and the war that started in 2022 the answers to these two questions
To these kinds of War very different for me there will never be a victory without the people that we don’t have standing next to us anymore unfortunately this is a very sad reality this will never be the kind of victory that I was craving for I will not have anyone to celebrate
It I mean this Victory if it is worth celebrating because this Victory is going to come at a great cost and this value on cost is measured in specific people’s lives that we get to read in the obituaries every day whether this Victory will be the victory that everyone’s imagining to themselves
Are very much doubt so whether I will leave to this Victory I cannot guarantee it because I can die and can perish any moment regardless of where I am whether it be the front line with my brothers and arms or just in a trade center somewhere in Kiev and a rocket missile
Can hit it and I get killed therefore I don’t know whether I live to see this Victory and I’m not sure that this will be the kind of Victory let me repeat myself that everyone is awaiting to see perhaps this is pretty pessimistic in terms of a message but
Unfortunately I don’t have another one to offer you yet it’s worth understanding that for this Victory to come to happen we have to work so much more and so much harder in the Civil Society in many ways and I have written a brief message just to remind myself getting back to your
Previous question that we are fighting on the front line for the civilian population to ensure conditions for the further development of the country that deserves loving being loved this is about the fact that after this war I would like to get back to the country that will a have some
Governmental institutions of some kind and B this will be the country we will continue talking about Justice and see that this country still confesses and professes democratic values and that after this war we will not have the non-democratic pathway to follow let’s put it this way because if we
Consider history a lot of the countries that went out came out of Wars their Democratic institutions unfortunately got weakened and this is the point when the Civil Society has to put an oversight now in a year two years until the victory through the Victory and passed it because our military
Now tomorrow or in a year’s time will not be contributing to reforms why because they’re at War they’re also getting tired they also respond acutely to different shocking situations they’re also suffering from PTSD these people want to get back to the country after the victory that will not collapse from
Within that would not be crumbling from within and this is our reference point we have to make sure this country is preserved within its territorial internationally recognized borders I want to believe in that and of course we want to make sure that the heart and soul of this country is well maintained
And preserved and this is something that deserves a very good and kind emphasis to be placed on me if I end it there because it seems to me that first we are over time and secondly that is an incredibly eloquent description of what you are all fighting
For and I thank you all and I think all of us owe you a tremendous amount thank you for being here thank you for being so honest
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