00:00 My name is Arisha Chimera, I'm the chair of the Association of Ukrainians Great Britain Bradford branch.
00:07 We're outside our community centre which is on Leggrooms Lane in Bradford, which is our BD7 area of Bradford.
00:16 We're coming up to the second anniversary of the full-scale illegal invasion of Russia on Ukraine.
00:26 So the war has been going on, it will be Saturday, March 2nd anniversary.
00:31 And whilst it is 10 years since war actually started in Ukraine after we had the revolution of dignity,
00:38 that very quickly got forgotten and wasn't so well remembered.
00:45 But the war that broke out two years ago hit the headlines and has severe repercussions throughout the whole of Europe
00:55 because it's not just a war against Ukraine, it's a war in Europe and the 20th century,
01:00 which never would anybody have believed that would happen.
01:05 So Ukraine is fighting for Europe, Europe's freedom, and whilst initially, the first six months definitely,
01:14 it was hitting the headlines all the time, recently it has dropped out of the news, not hit the headlines.
01:22 And we just cannot afford for people to forget it because it's the future of the freedom of the whole world that's at stake.
01:31 Since the conflict in the Middle East, obviously that is very serious and a concern for everybody there.
01:41 But Ukraine fell into the background and was rarely mentioned in the news.
01:46 People are losing their lives every single day in Ukraine. Bombings are continuing in places that people are unaware of.
01:56 All the towns and countries and villages near the border of Russia are being constantly bombed and it's not hitting any sort of news.
02:06 It's just the major towns when there's a major occurrence that hits the news.
02:11 But probably over the last couple of days we have hit the news more, certainly because of the news about the death of Navalny
02:21 and then the fact that Ukraine had to retreat from a town, possibly the front line, because they're running out of ammunition.
02:30 So it was like sending lambs to the slaughter, leaving soldiers out there.
02:34 So again it's a plea for the Western world to carry on the support because without the support Ukraine cannot manage on its own.
02:42 We're holding a vigil for peace at a mass service at St Joseph's Catholic Church, which is just off Manchester Road in Bradford.
02:53 So it's a BD5 postcode.
02:55 We've chosen there as opposed to our own church because it's a neutral ground and we want people of all denominations to feel that they are welcome
03:06 and to come and show their support for Ukraine and for peace in Ukraine, which is what everybody wants ultimately.
03:13 Peace and the return of a sovereign, independent Ukraine.
Comments