Surviving the Russian invasion

I have lived and worked in Ukraine for 23 years and have witnessed its enormous transition from a post-Soviet corrupt oligarchy to something that starts to resemble a European rules-based democracy. And I understand this scares the hell out of Vladimir Putin - what if his slavish subordinates start asking the same? In 2004, My Ukrainian wife and I participated in the Orange revolution and witnessed the seismic changes the election of a pro-western president and government ignited. Just 10 years later the more violent Revolution of Dignity broke the country even further away from it's Soviet past. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2014 made the rupture with its former colonial master permanent.In early February, Putin started his criminal war and immediately we all felt the affects. The farm that I manage for our Dutch shareholders had to prepare for the expected disruptions of the coming planting season. We remained in Ukraine for another 10 days, living in our basement and hearing and seeing the bombs explode around us, fortunately at safe distances, but still unnerving.

Relatives of my wife and stepdaughter volunteered in the territorial guards and were later drafted in the army. Young guys such as Vladik, who has a Phd in philosophy from the university of Warwick and until a few weeks ago worked in an IT company in Kiev described how soldiers are lacking basic equipment.

My wife Victoria’s godson 'Ilya' serves in a reconnaissance unit near Russian-occupied Kherson, the city where his grandparent (and my wife’s parents) lived and where he spent many summers. Every morning my wife checks if he is still unharmed. He and his unit received thanks to the generosity of many of our friends helmets, ballistic vests, multi-cam outfits and a thermal night vision camera. The only thing we can do is give them all they need to survive the uneven battle against the Beast from the East. The motivation of Ukrainians to fight for their beliefs in the ultimate victory is incredible, unfortunately the war will make many more victims before that point is reached.