PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — U.S. officials say Russia has increased the number of troops lining the Ukraine border. A White House official said thousands were arriving Wednesday, when some people expected an attack.
"It's nothing new to the Ukrainian nation who has lived under attack for the last eight years," said Iryna Mazur, originally from Ukraine, the country's Honorary Consul for Pennsylvania.
"People learn how to live with it, making sure their identity will be preserved."
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She said her parents, brother, other family members and friends are still there, and that many in Ukraine are not panicking. Instead, they are staying organized and ready to fight for their country if needed.
"The essence is they are defending their land. Ukraine has an extremely strong sense of national identity," she said.
"Ukraine is actually, in a strange way, very dangerous to Putin because Ukraine has what political scientists term as soft power.' Soft power is cultural power," said Eugene Luciw, President of the Philadelphia Branch of the Ukrainian Congress Committee.
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"We have no problem with the Russian people. They've just been sold a bad bill of goods. They've been kept from the light. Ukraine is that light. It's a powerful weapon for peace."
He said he believes Vladamir Putin wants some kind of control over the country, and he's worried about seeing history repeating itself.
"There's a lot at stake. A lot of human lives," he added.
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Wednesday night, U.S. officials said that despite the request for Russia to withdraw troops from its border with Ukraine, as many as 7,000 troops were believed to have been added to the border.
"We have to do everything possible today to prevent any kind of further military aggression and any kind of possible war," said Mazur.
Both say if you are interested in helping Ukraine at the local level, call your local legislatures. They say urge lawmakers introduce and support legislation that would help provide military support or create immediate sanctions on Russia.
Click below for the following links:
- Ukrainian Congress Committee
- Honorary Consul for Pennsylvania
