Those left behind
Ukrainians in P.E.I. worried for relatives, friends following Russian invasion
“Even though I’m not in the middle of that, I am feeling their pain.” Dmytro Ponomarov
What was meant to be a typical morning for Dmytro Ponomarov quickly turned into one filled with fear, confusion and uncertainty.
Ponomarov, a Ukrainian native who lives in Summerside, P.E.I., signed into Facebook after waking up on the morning of Feb. 24 when he saw the news – a full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces had begun, targeting multiple cities and military infrastructures.
Instantly, Ponomarov’s thoughts rushed to his friends and family back in his home country.
“I called them, they are pretty much confused and don’t know what to do,” he said in a phone interview with SaltWire Network on Feb. 24.
“They are frightened about all of this. They have reports on the local news channels about the scope and damage of this invasion. They are in the middle of this.”
From speaking with relatives and friends, Ponomarov said many are considering fleeing to neighbouring countries like Poland, while others are trying to get more information about what is happening throughout the country.
“Most of the folks are trying to figure out what's going to happen next because they don’t know a lot of information,” he said.
“They are deciding to stay in a quieter place, somewhere further away from military bases and they’re waiting for some sort of clarity on the scope of this.”
Ponomarov, who immigrated to Canada in 2016 following the annexation of Crimea in 2014, said news of the Feb. 24 invasion brought back memories of the violence from when Russia invaded seven years ago.
“It’s all different in terms of magnitude, but even though I’m not in the middle of that, I am feeling their pain,” he said.
However, he said the scale of the most recent attack is much greater than the events in 2014, with Russian military forces attacking the country from land, sea and air.
Hearing the news of the invasion while being in Canada is difficult and brings a feeling of helplessness to the situation, said Yuliya Rashchupkina,
an assistant professor of political science at UPEI who moved from Ukraine in 2010.
“You know, you want to help but you don’t know what you can do in this situation because it is beyond your control,” she said.
“It's very hard being so far from family and friends at this moment, knowing that they are under such stress and that violence is happening in many places in Ukraine, so it's very difficult.”
Rashchupkina, originally from Luhansk, which is one of the cities partially held by Ukrainian separatists, said her mother and other relatives live in the area. She said she was able to speak to her mother that morning.
“She is in a Ukraine-controlled area, but I know in Luhansk at least a few hours ago, tanks entered an area that is not too far from them,” she said. “There was (an internet) connection, there was everything, they had power in the small town where my mom, aunt and brother live.”
Rashchupkina also spoke to some of her friends who are in Ukraine and said many of them aren’t willing to surrender.
“Some of them are not leaving anywhere, they are ready to fight for their homeland. They don’t see any other way out but just to fight,” she said.
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine is made more difficult when considering the geopolitical history many people in bordering cities around Ukraine have with Russia, Rashchupkina said.
“On top of what we have, we need to keep in mind a lot of people in Donetsk area, they have relatives in Russia, so they have historical ties to Russia one way or another,” she said.
“It adds to the complexity of the conflict and each side has its own narrative and vision of the situation. Even if you look at the posts of separatists on social media, they are calling Ukrainian government officials Nazis and fascists.”
When it comes to support from Canada, Ponomarov said many in the Ukrainian communities across Canada are considering how they can help, but a few difficulties stand in their way.
“Even money transfers, it's not clear whether they work or not,” he said.
“The credit cards were blocked, so I’m now currently looking for an opportunity to send some money to Ukraine to my relatives. Hopefully I’ll find some way to do that.”
Ponomarov said they are also considering petitioning the federal and provincial governments to create emergency sponsorship programs to allow Canadian-Ukrainian families who have the means to bring relatives and those most vulnerable from Ukraine into Canada.
“Ukrainians, I think, we have enough resources to help a lot of people here without putting the burden on other Canadians,” he said.
“We could do a lot if we had some sort of exemption on immigration from that region.”
Aside from bringing those in need into Canada, Ponomarov said just making sure they are safe needs to be a priority.
“The international support Canada provides right now in terms of financial, military and intelligence support, that all matters a lot,” he said.
“But whether we can somehow help those folks withstand that hard period, maybe facilitate their stay wherever that may be, if we can just send some funds and pay for some shelter and food, that is what we are concerned with the most.”