Halt of American military aid stirs feelings of unease amongst Kamloops Ukrainian community

After the public back and forth, American leadership paused shipments of military aid to Ukraine, something Bell says has a multi-layered impact.

“The symbolic weight of having the U.S. backing Ukraine in the conflict is really important. Russia knows that, Ukraine knows that and the U.S. knows that, too. To withdraw that support or threaten to withdraw that support will have a military effect but it’ll likely have a larger effect on morale,” he says, “both on Ukrainian morale in terms of worry about where things will go, but also on Russian morale. It gives Russia a boost on what has been more or less a stalemate for a while.”

Rev. Andrzej Wasylink of the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Church in Kamloops says it’s another layer of uncertainty for Ukrainians.

“They are worrying about the future of their country but also what kind of country they will receive after so much sacrifice. It has to be fair. And fairness wasn’t the tone of the peace talk that Mr. Trump was proceeding with.”

Wasylinko says at times, the ongoing war feels overwhelming. However, many people in the Ukrainian community have found hope in solidarity. He adds the church recently hosted a service to acknowledge the three-year anniversary of the start of the war, and it brought in people outside of the existing congregation.

“Some of them met for the first time and they’ve been here for a few years in Kamloops,” he explains. “It was a place of getting together and we are planning more events for that — so just, be together.”

Amid the unknown future of American military support, Bell points out that the initial start of the conflict isn’t about who is providing support to Ukraine and what they’re getting in return.

“I think that’s one thing that’s important just to keep in mind as your hear rhetoric about some people doing enough or not doing enough, or provoking or not provoking. I think the very simple fact of the matter is that Russia invaded Ukraine and the war could end very easily if Russia just left,” he reiterates.

by Dylana Kneeshaw

Halt of American military aid stirs feelings of unease amongst Kamloops Ukrainian community

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