My Sheaf of Notes on the Russia-Ukraine War

The war is now in its seventh month. And this is my third publication since I was granted an honorary membership of Ukraine DAO by its co-founder Alona Shevchenko.

Ukraine is fast regaining all the territories it recently lost to Russia following the launch of a counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region. It is its most significant military operation since the war began in February. And there are some truths to it!

One, the recurring theme in the unending resistance of Ukraine to the Russian invasion is that a united people are the hardest to defeat in war.

Two, it is ironic that the Russians who, today, are Ukraine’s aggressors fought side by side with the Ukrainians against the Nazis to the very end.

Three, Ukraine is bound and determined to fight to the last man inspired by how Ukrainian patriots contributed to Russia’s 1945 victory over Nazi Germany at the end of the Second World War.

77 Years Later

Russia is now at war with Ukraine no thanks to its president Vladimir Putin. If this was a Hollywood action movie, one would have thought that Putin’s excuse for the invasion of Ukraine, dubbed the DeNazification of Ukraine, was better imagined than “justified.” But Russia’s war in Ukraine says it’s DeNazification or nothing!

7 Months Into the War

The Russian troops are fleeing!

This week saw the shameful retreat of the Russian troops. As the latest development from the war theater, it puts a question mark on the military superiority of the Russians and on the ability of the Ukrainian forces to end the war in a decisive victory before Christmas.

Will the retreating Russians troops stand down in the end and what are the chances that Ukraine will consolidate its military gain in the weeks ahead?

Is Ukraine Justly Covered in Western Media?

Newspaper headlines in the mainstream media have massively captured the historic moment of what is described as the largest counteroffensive since the end of world war 2. And for Ukraine,it is its major military gain since the widely-condemned invasion of its territory.

ALONA SHEVCHENKO

According to Ukraine DAO’s cofounder Alona Shevchenko, the Russians deserting active combat zones in droves means that the tide of war is gradually turning against the invading Russian army, while the liberated territories are a mark of Ukraine’s resolve to prosecute the war, village by village, town by town, and city by city, no matter how many lives of its compatriots have been lost — and until the expulsion of the aggressors is complete.

What Can Ukraine Teach the World?

The unyielding resistance of the Ukrainian soldiers spread across different combat zones can teach the world a lesson in patriotism. After all, the Ukrainian cause is supported by millions across the world who raise its flag in solidarity.

The enduring sacrifice of its fallen heroes also proves that defending one’s land from marauding invaders is the honor of a lifetime. And every time President Putin is seen laying a wreath on the consecrated ground dedicated to the memory of the Red Army this truth is ironically upheld.

Finally, the most important lesson Ukraine can teach the world is that a truckload of right is better than a truckload of might. The analogy that explains Putin’s DeNazification agenda comes from Aesop’s fable of the cruel fox and the lamb. It moralizes Ukraine as the lamb and villainizes Russia as the fox that finds an excuse to kill it. According to Aesop, any excuse will serve the tyrant.

Ukraine Dao, Kharkiv Region and a Glorious September

Ukraine DAO, the world’s first war time DAO, was used to running the risk of mobilizing its 30 UKD trucks across the war-torn country in a bid to provide humanitarian relief to suffering Ukrainians. But with the liberation of Russian occupied territories, it now faces less risk and has more leverage to operate its trucks within the liberated territory at maximum capacity.

The liberation of the occupied territories began shortly after the Russia -Ukraine war entered its 7th month and has seen Ukraine rapidly gaining the upper hand through massive counterattacks. So far, this month, the reclaimed territory is altogether twice the size of Greater London and it includes dozens of towns and villages in the north east of Ukraine.

September will go down in history as many Russian soldiers have been chased into the forests and millions of dollars worth of military equipment have been abandoned by the fleeing soldiers in the war zones.

Also published here.