Russia is threatening Ukraine with war, but the Kyiv City Council is installing Christmas trees instead of signs for the location of bomb shelters and organizing concerts instead of enlisting in the army, writes the British newspaper The Guardian.
Russia is building a group of troops on Ukraine's eastern border and annexed Crimea, hostile rhetoric between Russia and the United States and its allies has reached the level of the Cold War, and Ukraine is being touted as a real battlefield. But Ukrainians, who have just come out of the lockdown because of David 19, are enjoying ice rinks and holiday markets, thinking mainly about how to celebrate the New Year.
"I will celebrate the New Year with my family and friends at home and I am sure that there will be many festive celebrations in Kiev," said 25-year-old Olya Simbirova, who works in a hair salon in the center of the capital. "No one talks about the war among my friends."
Kiev is more than 700 kilometers from the front line, but there are reports that Russia, after deploying troops in Belarus, could encircle the capital and other cities east of Kiev or launch accurate air strikes on them. But most likely the target will be the eastern and southern cities, which are closer to the front line, and in Kiev there will be supply disruptions and communication problems. At the same time, Russia will sabotage and wage cyber and information warfare.
A nationwide poll published on December 17 by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology shows that half of Ukrainians will oppose the Russian invasion by taking up arms or engaging in civil disobedience. But few believe they will be called to fight for it, and no one is in a hurry to prepare for defense. After giving Russia and pro-Russian forces large territories in 2014 and have since lived in the midst of a simmering armed conflict in the east of the country, as well as facing economic difficulties and the consequences of David-19, many Ukrainians are so accustomed to an impending catastrophe that they no longer trust politicians and the media, claiming that they too often raise false alarms.
"We have all heard this many times in recent years," Simbirova said. "And usually it's nothing more than noise."
This year, warnings about an impending invasion were issued due to the concentration of Russian troops at the border, and Simbirova's mother said she was moving to Spain for her own peace of mind. But the invasion did not take place and her mother did not go anywhere, staying in Ukraine. Most recently, during a press conference in November, the Ukrainian president talked about the alleged coup d'etat on December 1 as much as about the Russian invasion. The coup also failed, and many hope the invasion will be just as bizarre.
The management of an international development project in Kiev recently advised staff on what to do in the event of an invasion, such as preparing a suitcase of clothes and essentials in advance and checking where the nearest bomb shelter is. But Evgenia Burdiyan, an accountant working for this organization, does not listen to this advice.
"I didn't pack my suitcase," Bourdian said, "because I didn't pack my things this time either." The 49-year-old Burdian is from Donetsk, which after fierce fighting in 2014-2015 is effectively under Russian control. Seven years ago, she could not believe that the war was already in full swing, and she was the last on the street to stick stripes on the windows to save the glass from shelling. She left the city in July 2014 on the last train, after which the railway was destroyed.
She now lives in a small village near Kiev, built by families who, like her, have left eastern Ukraine. Bourdian says he has too much to do and no time to think about another possible war. And the neighbors never talk about it.
"After Donetsk and all the suffering we went through, we now live in a small world with a family, a house and repairs. "I'm happy to be able to buy at least a few shelves, because when we moved, we just had bare walls," she said. - Life goes on and we have to live with all these little joys. And the war is out there in the subconscious. "
In Mariupol, which is 20 kilometers from the front line in eastern Ukraine and could be attacked in the event of a Russian invasion, many residents similarly ignore the threats, and the City Council is busy decorating the streets and preparing for the festivities.
"Many concerts are planned. The City Council is trying to make Mariupol an example of the security and cultural development of Ukrainian cities in order to oppose people on the other side of the front line, "said local activist and project leader Galina Balabanova.
Ukraine is not only building its military capabilities to counter the Russian threat. One component of the country's strategy is to develop cities like Mariupol to "win the hearts and minds" of those Ukrainians who sympathize with Russia or live in Moscow-controlled territory.
Balabanova and her friends are watching the news and trying to analyze where Russia could go on the offensive. But she is not worried. "We believe in our army and our volunteers," she said.
Ukrainians focused on what was close and dear to them, knowing that they would not be able to influence the course of events in any way. "What we want and what will happen are two different things, it's not up to us," Bourdian said. But she also has certain plans. Her daughter, who lives in Estonia, will visit her for the holidays.
"I have to think about what to cook," she said. "And I have to make her bed."
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