Ukraine, one year on: Exhausted but not broken
By Valérie Gauriat, Euronews International Affairs Correspondent
Hello and welcome to the Briefing.
Today we bring you a special edition marking an anniversary that none of us had any desire to mark: one year since Russia launched the invasion of Ukraine. We have spent the last twelve months closely following each and every development in this ruthless war and, truth be told, we still have no idea of when or how it will all end. We now pass the floor to our correspondent Valérie Gauriat, who recently travelled to Ukraine to witness the enduring willpower of a nation under attack.
As I stood in the snow on Maidan square, right where I was one year ago on the very first day of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, the sight of traffic and passers-by stopping at reopened coffee shops was somehow comforting in comparison to the doom that had fallen upon Kyiv on the 24th of February 2022.
But the shriek of air raid sirens was still there to embody the stark reality of the war. So were the battered buildings in the nearby towns of Irpin, Bucha, or Borodyanka, symbols of resistance to the Russian troops who were defeated in the grueling battle of Kyiv.
Everywhere, reconstruction is underway. In what was one of the most ravaged streets of Bucha, the scene of a massacre, brand new houses have now risen from the rubble.
This was one of the signs of the persistent resilience of the Ukrainian people that had struck me on my two previous trips to the war-torn country.
Persistent also is the solidarity of Ukrainians towards those who have lost everything. I saw first-hand the work and good humour of the young volunteers from the “Brave to Rebuild” NGO, who were busy clearing the debris from Tetiana’s family property in Gorenka.
“It brought me back from another world,” Tetiana tells me, confident that her home will be reborn from the ashes.
Thousands of people, however, are still displaced from their ruined homes. Here and there, temporary “modular villages” have been set up to shelter all those who are yet to find a place to live.
Tamara’s emotion is contagious, as volunteers who came to deliver food to the shelter surprised her with a bouquet of red roses to celebrate her birthday.
“A year ago we were sitting around a table, there was music, we shared pleasant memories. Now there is nothing to commemorate”, she tells me. Her voice sinks as she adds: “We are just waiting for victory. We know it will happen. But we hope it happens soon because we can't take it anymore.”
More often than not, sadness quickly gives way to the beaming determination I found among many of those I met in Ukraine.
I was swept away by the energy flowing from Natalya. She used to sew women’s clothes in Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city, close to the Russian border. The failed Russian assault on the region has left deep scars. But Natalya is undeterred: she and her team now make garments and equipment for the Ukrainian army.
“We are not here waiting for victory, we are working to make it happen as soon as possible,” she says, her eyes glowing with pride.
“I have a three-year-old grandson,” Natalya adds, with tears in her eyes. “I want him to grow up in a free Ukraine.”
Once outside, after leaving the warmth of an improvised meal with Natalia and her team, my crew and I are gripped by the biting cold that has taken over the city.
Even more griping is a busker’s interpretation of “Choven,” a song written in 2019 by Okean Elzy, a well-known band in Ukraine. “Exhausted by wars, but not broken by anyone, may my land blossom!” the busker sings.
A refrain that has followed me all the way back home and to the editing room in France. A haunting memory of a nation’s grief and untiring resolve that will echo in my mind for long.
Watch the trailer of Valérie’s special Euronews Witness episode, which will be available in full on this page after 21:00 CET tonight. | |