On video: Ukrainian President Zelensky welcomes Western leaders in Kiev/Telegram
Citizens of Ukraine today (Saturday) laid flowers in honor of the dead, wept and hoped for victory despite the increasing cost of the war against Russia, marking the second anniversary of the invasion that shows no signs of abating.
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in the capital Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelensky memorial events alongside foreign leaders who came to express solidarity with Ukraine in the shadow of the fear of the erosion of Western support in the evening.
Residents of the city expressed fear that the war would last for years.
"I am realistic and understand that it is likely that the war will continue for the next three or four years. I hope that society will mobilize, I hope that we can somehow defeat Russia," said Denis Simonovsky, a resident of the capital.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky next to European Union Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen at a press conference in Kyiv to mark two years since the war with Russia, February 24, 2024/Reuters
In the western city of Lviv, hundreds of miles from the frontline battles, women wept as a priest led a prayer at a cemetery decorated with blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flags, each marking the death of a soldier.
"The children hold the front. We can only imagine what effort and price they pay for every quiet day we have. I want to believe that it's not all in vain. We have funerals every day," said Abhania Demchuk, a widow and mother of two. "We believe that the victory will be ours. It comes at a very high price."
As the war enters its third year, Russian forces hold about 18% of Ukraine's territory and are in the midst of a new offensive in the east, following the capture of the devastated town of Abdiyevka late last week.
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A cemetery in the town of Bucha, on the outskirts of Kiev, Ukraine, February 24, 2024/Reuters
Exhausted from two years of fighting, the Ukrainian government faces many challenges, chief among them filling the ranks on the battlefield without destroying the fragile economy.
Kiev is also suffering from a critical shortage of ammunition, while Republicans in the United States are blocking attempts by the White House to transfer new military aid to Kiev, which is at a disadvantage in terms of forces and armaments compared to Russia.
For most Ukrainians, the shock of the invasion has long since given way to constant fear, even for residents of Kyiv, which is far from the fighting and well covered by air defenses.
"I would say it completely changed my life. I went to sleep in one life and woke up in a completely different life," said Oleg Papushenko, an English teacher in the Kyiv center.
"(The war) destroyed many lives, it claimed many lives. But for me, it's just a constant danger of being killed by Russian missiles or fear of being captured by these animals."
Olga Kirilenko, a journalist from Kiev who wrote about society and politics before the war, said that her partner was fighting at the front and that the war now dominates her life.
"Most of my friends are fighting or volunteering for the army. That's it. Now, every day in this life is a war."
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