The “crown” in Kiev – The deceptive normality of the war in Ukraine

Winter has come in Ukraine, it is bitterly cold, roads and trees are covered with snow. The white makes the city seem peaceful, only a few anti-tank barriers and isolated sandbags can be seen. Shops, bars and restaurants are busy, the streets are crowded and cultural attractions have opened their doors again. The only difference with the past: due to the curfew from 10 p.m., the opera performance starts in the afternoon.

In March there were only about one million inhabitants in Kiev, now there are three million again and about 80 percent of the population has returned. Normal seems to have returned simply because people need normal. Air raid sirens, even several times a day, are often not taken seriously. “We won’t let Putin spoil our lunch,” an embassy official summed up the general mood. But the idyll is deceptive, as it soon turned out.

At the initiative of European Minister Karoline Edtstadler, eight European politicians (from Germany, Liechtenstein, Croatia, Romania, Latvia, Lithuania and the Vice-President of the EU Parliament) traveled to Kiev to put women and girls at war in the spotlight.

The first victims of violence and war
Women are the first victims, violence is used as a weapon against them, it is mothers who have lost sons and wives who have had to bury their husbands. The program included a meeting with the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, and a conversation with female students.

The politicians not only had solidarity and fine words, but also actions in their luggage. Some 200,000 euros came from Austria for war crimes investigations, 105,000 euros for equipment and training in digital forensics and relief supplies for the winter. Liechtenstein donates 500,000 Swiss francs to the Zelenska Foundation, Germany about five million euros through the United Nations Development Programme.

Air raid siren – the visit is interrupted abruptly
The visit to a shelter for war victims is abruptly interrupted. While a man from Mariupol reports that his house was shot at and that his leg was injured, which was treated only nine days later because he did not dare to go to the hospital for fear of the Russians, the security guards ended the appointment early. Shortly before, there had been an air raid alarm. That means it will take another half hour before the missiles can hit.

Security officials immediately urged a turnaround, but a Ukrainian government official was eager to continue meeting with the survivors. After all, the alarm is part of everyday life for them and visitors should also know what is happening in Ukraine and hear the impressive descriptions.

But the group’s nervousness increased and suddenly they were quickly warned to leave. The European delegation was taken to two bomb shelters, where they had to hold out for more than two hours. The news that poured in via social media and special news services was anything but reassuring. A total of 31 missiles were fired at Kiev from the Black Sea and Ukraine was able to intercept 21.

The bullet missed the target and hit the house instead
A projectile landed near the care center where the group of politicians recently stayed. The Russian missile missed its target, a critical infrastructure facility. Instead, a shop was hit, parts of the house collapsed, a huge crater formed on the street, cars completely burned out and rubble was everywhere. “It looked like a battlefield” – this often casually phrased phrase became the frightening truth.

victims on the street
The deputy interior minister of Ukraine explained to the local delegation what had happened. Three people were killed here, including a 17-year-old who happened to be walking nearby with her boyfriend, who was seriously injured. And then, in the dark, sight fell on the three bodies still badly covered in the street. Probably no coincidence. The dead were deliberately not removed by the Ukrainian authorities, the Europeans should see them, feel the bloody reality. There is no more truthful and horrible way to show what war means.

In Kiev, the water had to be shut off on Wednesday evening and there was only sporadic electricity. In general, energy supply is one of the biggest problems in the country right now – and winter has only just begun.

“The worst thing is getting used to the war,” said the visibly moved minister Karoline Edtstadler when the delegation returned to EU soil after a 12-hour train journey from Kiev to Poland. For the people of Ukraine, the bombing is nothing special anymore, they somehow learned to live with it, because they have no other choice. “But the world should not get used to it,” emphasizes Edtstadler.