Last July my phone rang in the middle of the night. From the uncontrollable sobbing on the other end of the line, I knew that my friend Olya’s son, Vasyl, had died. Vasyl was shot by a russian sniper while his unit was clearing a recently liberated village of russian detritus, human and otherwise. That he died a hero’s death was of little comfort to his two daughters, wife, mother and grandmother.
Ten years ago, when russia’s war against Ukraine began, Vasyl served in the Donbas for two years. On February 24, 2022, when russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Vasyl, like millions of Ukrainians, was working in Poland. He immediately returned home to serve again. Like millions of Ukrainians who have remained in Ukraine despite the bombing and terror, Vasyl believed that he had a duty to fight for his homeland, for his childrens’ future.
I spoke to Vasyl from time to time. Each time I asked him to stay safe. And each time Vasyl told me that he knew, that sooner or later, his number would come up. The recent news of the withdrawal of Ukrainian Armed Forces from Avdiivka was particularly painful because that is the land that Vasyl died liberating. The retreat from Avdiivka was due not to the lack of will to fight; it was due to the sad fact that the Ukrainians are running out of ammunition to fight with.
In recent days, Canada and Ukraine’s allies have announced additional aid to Ukraine. And for that we are grateful. But we must do more soon to make sure that a year from now, we won’t be wishing we had done more because the cost of not helping Ukraine win this war is far less than the cost of doing nothing. It is far better to be the government that spent too much on supporting Ukraine, than to be the government that is forced to mobilize Canadians to support their NATO allies if Ukraine fails.
We know that among the overwhelming majority of Canadians, support for Ukraine remains high. We ask that, ahead of the 2024 Budget, which will be released this spring, all Canadians let their Members of Parliament know that they support more aid for Ukraine that is commensurate with the desperate needs of Ukraine and the expectations of our allies as to the Canadian contribution to NATO and to the defence of Ukraine. Additional funding can be used to invest in production by Canadian defence manufacturers, to make purchases from allied manufacturers in the US, Germany and elsewhere, to support Ukraine’s defence sector manufacturers, and to contribute to allied coalitions for joint purchases, such as the artillery purchase being organized by the Czech Republic.
The brave Ukrainians who are defending our freedom deserve unanimous support in Canada’s parliament. Unfortunately, we hear from some politicians that posturing around support for Ukraine is ‘not personal’ – it’s just politics. I assure you – it is very personal. Thousands of innocent people have been murdered by Russia’s war, and thousands more wounded, injured, abducted, or imprisoned. These are our friends and family, and every single day Ukrainians in Canada fear dreaded news about their loved ones on the front lines. These are also the friends and family of the extraordinary Canadians who gave their lives in defence of Ukraine. We extend our gratitude and condolences to their families - Emile-Antoine Roy-Sirois, Joseph Hildebrand, Grygorii Tsekhmistrenko, Cole Zelenco, Kyle Porter, Austin Lathlin-Bercier, Josh Mayers, Brad Stratford, Anthony Ihnat.
Ukraine must be given the weapons it needs to win this war now. Because the only way this war will end is with victory for Ukraine. Anything short of that is just delaying the inevitable reckoning with a murderous, despotic and totalitarian regime. Anything short of that is inviting further invasion from Putin - but this time into NATO countries, which will require Canadians to put boots on the ground to defend their NATO allies.
We must do more to make sure that Vasyl, who fought for you and for me, did not die in vain.
Alexandra Chyczij is National President of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress