A year has passed since the fateful dawn that shook Ukraine violently, Kiev wakes up peaceful and serene. The silent night, with no air raid alarm sirens, dimmed any strong expectation that something terrible might happen in the capital on the day that marks the first anniversary of the war. However, the silence felt in the streets has a dense symbolism, blown up over 365 painful, dramatic and excruciating days. Perhaps the silence is the deafening cry of Ukrainian grief at an event so cruel to remember.
At the end of Santa Sofia Square, where the majestic Cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stands, the icy wind blows so fiercely that the few present are forced to huddle in their coats. With fluffy hats pulled over their heads, they resist the cold to contemplate the tanks and the fragments of Russian missiles that have been buried in the square for months as a symbol of the Ukrainian resistance. A boy climbs onto one of the tanks and poses smiling for the photo, while a father with his son in his arms looks at a wrecked truck.
Bones tremble with fear
Next to a charred car, Anastasiia Matiushko hides her chin in her jacket and tries to control the turmoil caused by fear. “I feel an emptiness. I feel lost because I understand what these machines can do, but I’m also proud that our military managed to stop them and continue to fight for freedom,” she says in a choked voice. Shock shakes her body and soul.
The 31-year-old has been living in the United Arab Emirates since 2014, where she left after Russia’s invasion of Crimea, and had not visited Kiev for two years. The homesickness was more than much, but the fear is still very much present, just as present as it was in February 2022. “Last night and today my bones shook like last year, when the war started. Now the feeling is basically the same, but with much hatred for the Russian troops and everyone who supports this war. Innocents are dying and the country is being destroyed. It’s hard to describe”.
While Anastasiia strolls through the wreckage, an elderly couple ahead walks at a hurried pace to the mural of the victims who died over the past eight years. At the end of the afternoon no one stops in front of the panel full of pictures of the victims, but the bouquets of flowers and candles on the floor illustrate the day of tribute. In the morning, in that same square, it was the families of the victims who addressed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a ceremony packed with military personnel including Helena Carreiras, the only European Union defense minister to visit Kiev on the anniversary.
Minister witnesses destruction
As a show of solidarity and support for Ukraine, the representative of the Portuguese government visited Irpin, the martyr city northwest of Kiev. At the entrance to the city, Helena Carreiras heard the Ukrainian army spokesman explain that it was thanks to the destroyed bridge that the army stopped the advance of Russian troops and that it was through this bridge that hundreds of civilians crossed the river to escape the occupation test. “The current was strong then and it was very difficult to cross to this side,” explains the soldier, standing next to a grimy pram.
During the visit, the Portuguese delegation also parked in the graveyard of charred vehicles painted with sunflowers, where the defense minister couldn’t contain her admiration for Ukraine’s resilience. “You don’t look back. You don’t forget the past, but you know it’s important to rebuild. We are here to help you. Portugal has supported Ukraine from the beginning and will continue to do so,” he said.
After passing through a cultural center hit by a Russian missile, Helena Carreiras finally visited a residential area that had been completely massacred. Among the scorched buildings, where the smell of fire hangs in the air, the minister acknowledged that Ukraine is going through a “critical moment” and that the Portuguese government is therefore making efforts to send the promised Leopard 2 tanks to the end. from March
Source: DN
