Pride and Sorrow in Kyiv: Ukrainians Hope for Peace Amidst Military Successes

In Kyiv, a palpable sense of pride emanates from Ukrainians regarding their military's recent successes against Russia. However, this pride is tempered by profound personal losses and an overwhelming longing for the war to end. The recent Ukrainian offensive, targeting Russian oil production and effectively isolating Crimea, has inflicted significant damage, forcing Russian tourists to flee the peninsula.

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So it is in a war. You lose people. We hardly had an army when the war began. Now we have built up world-class resistance. But all these young boys... it is terrible that they have to die.

Natalja Hulsjina, 48, shared the anguish of not knowing her son Vasia's fate since he disappeared near Pokrovsk on September 8, 2024. "So it is in a war. You lose people," she stated, reflecting on the transformation of Ukraine's initially small army into a "world-class resistance." Yet, the cost in young lives weighs heavily, a sentiment echoed by many.

Doctor Antonina Kovaljova, 63, while acknowledging Russians as enemies, cannot find joy in their suffering. "I have lived through all that myself," she said, referencing her own experiences. She stressed that the onus is on Russia to end the war, noting that it is not just Putin but also Russian soldiers fighting and dying for pay.

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The Russians are our enemies. But I cannot rejoice in the suffering of ordinary people. I have lived through all that myself.

Kovaljova and her friend Inna Ivanenko, who once visited Crimea frequently before 2014, now find themselves estranged from former friends on the peninsula who have seemingly adopted new viewpoints. Kovaljova, who owns property near Simferopol, last visited in 2019 and has no idea who occupies it now.

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We Ukrainians stood on Maidan in 2014 and forced our government to resign. But the Russian people do not want to stop the war. It is not just Putin fighting us, it is Russian soldiers who come here to kill us. Because they get paid!

Natalja Kotenko, 52, anticipates the conflict will continue for at least another year or two, despite Russia's current pressures. Class teacher Inna Ivanenko, 67, originally from Russia, still has relatives there, adding another layer to the complex emotional landscape of the ongoing war.

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They said they had to 'change their views on things.' Since then, we haven't spoken. I have a property outside Simferopol, I was there the last time in 2019. Someone else lives there now. I have no idea who it is.