A crowdfunding campaign was launched in Slovakia to finance the purchase of ammunition for Ukraine. The organizers of this fundraiser explained on Wednesday that they wanted to raise one million euros, rejecting their government's refusal to send military aid to their war-torn neighbor.
Thousands of people have already contributed 750,000 euros to this campaign since Monday, when the “Peace for Ukraine” group launched its initiative.
“We want and can help”
Since returning to power last year, Prime Minister Robert Fico has ended military aid to Ukraine and advocated peace talks with Russia. One of the donors, Tomas Benetin, said this was his main motivation. “I wanted the world to know that Slovakia is not just made up of pro-Kremlin politicians,” said the 36-year-old from Kosice.
Zuzana Izsakova, representative of the initiative, said: “We, the people of Slovakia, want and can help” Ukraine. “We want to show that it is not just the government and Robert Fico who decide this issue.”
The organization plans to pass the money raised to an international project led by the Czech Republic to buy ammunition for kyiv.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala indicated on Tuesday that twenty countries had already committed to financing the purchase of 500,000 shells outside Europe. The Slovak government did not join the Czech project.
Marian Kulich, another representative of Peace for Ukraine, explained that the Slovak initiative arose from disagreement with the government's positions on Ukraine. “We are convinced that many people in Slovakia do not identify with the Czech government's rejection of the project,” she said. According to Zuzana Izsakova, the group wants to match the million euros offered by the Slovenian government last month.
“Help the Ukrainian defenders”
One of the notable supporters of the Slovak fundraising campaign, Holocaust survivor Otto Simko, believes that his own war experience can be applied to the situation in Ukraine.
Aged 99, this former journalist participated in the Slovak national uprising of 1942, an attempt to resist German troops during the Second World War.
“We fought the aggressor, the German occupier (…). It was impossible to negotiate with them, they had to be defeated,” says Otto Simko in a campaign video for the campaign. “If I can give just twenty euros to buy a single ball, I will know that this ball is in good hands,” he assures.
Documentary filmmaker Pavol Pekarcik, who spent several months in Ukraine shooting films, also supports this initiative. “Feeling helpless is probably the worst thing a person can experience,” he said in a video message promoting the campaign. “This is how we can help the Ukrainian defenders so that they are not left empty-handed when someone shoots at them,” he added.