"We did not expect the war to happen so widely and that Putin would dare to cross the borders … People are very angry at him" (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
Hours after Russian troops invaded eastern Ukraine and its air force struck military targets in the capital Kyiv and other parts of the country, residents tried to get on with everyday life, despite rising panic amid fears of an imminent deadly war.
By Thursday noon, the capital appeared to operating as normal as possible, with “gas, electricity, internet and water in the pipes” according to 47-year-old Lyudmila Bryn, the chief executive officer of Children Mission — a faith-based NGO training people for children’s ministry — who has lived in Kyiv for 25 years.
Her organisation works closely with a South African children’s organisation the Petra Institute.
Bryn, who lives in the western part of Kyiv, spoke to the Mail & Guardian via WhatsApp voice note as she rushed to the supermarket to buy essential household goods.
“This war is unjust, and people in Russia need to see it, and rise against the government who directs them in this unjust war,” she said.
“We did not expect the war to happen so widely and that Putin would dare to cross the borders … People are very angry at him, even now I heard a lot of curses [against] him and the Russian army.”
“We are a separate country: we have our own problems but we are free people. We elected our president (in 2014): we have the right to vote and we have the right to speak and we don’t want to be under [Russia’s rule],” Bryn added.
“First of all you feel fear and panic, but then you realise ‘it is my land, you don’t have the right to tell me what to do’, so we will defend it in the way we can do it.”
President Charles Michel of the European Council and President Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission condemned Russia’s “military aggression”, calling it a “barbaric” attack on Ukraine.
“We call on Russia to immediately cease the hostilities, withdraw its military from Ukraine and fully respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence,” said Michel. “Such use of force and coercion has no place in the 21st century. The EU stands firmly by Ukraine and its people as they face this unparalleled crisis”.
From where she lives, next to a highway leading to the west of the country’s Zhytomyr, Vinnytsa and Rivne regions, Bryn could see cars and buses leaving the city.
“The highway is packed, it does not move. People started to leave: they probably have plans where they can go,” she told the M&G.
A few smaller supermarkets were open, but major shopping centres in the city were closed, as were some foreign-run shops whose owners might have left the country.
People with big suitcases queued outside a bus station not far from where Bryn stays.
“The queues are long and there might not be enough buses for everyone to leave today. It seems quite peaceful — nervous, but peaceful,” she said. “We will see, I will go there tonight to see if someone needs a place to sleep.”
Residents in Kyiv were advised to stay at home while the underground metro train services was running free of charge for all citizens — given that underground stations can act as a refuge when there is bombing in the city.
A spokesperson for South Africa’s department of international relations and co-operation said the government was “concerned” about the “ongoing tensions” that could have regional and global ramifications.
South Africa urged all parties to “devote increased efforts to diplomacy” and to find a solution that would help quell tensions.
“All parties have much to gain from a negotiated outcome and much to lose from an unnecessary and violent conflict,” International Relations and Co-operation Minister Naledi Pandor said.
She said the UN Security Council, which this month is chaired by Russia, should play a “central role” in the search for peace.
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