Sergiy Osachuk

The view from Ukraine: world war three has already started

A funeral for a Ukrainian soldier outside Chernivtsi (Getty)

I saw the first Russian bombs land from my balcony in Chernivtsi. They hit a military depot 50 miles away but the vibrations were so strong it felt like it happened right by us. I’d attended an intelligence briefing from Volodymyr Zelensky’s office hours before to be updated on the situation: I’m the governor of Chernivtsi, the capital of the Oblast region. The President’s office was keeping us abreast of plans for an invasion that many Ukrainians thought would never happen. Even now, it’s hard to take in.

The horrific images from Bucha have finally alerted the world to Putin’s true tactics. We are living through daily air raids, rocket strikes, and even white phosphorus bombs. Our priority now is saving those stuck in besieged territories where Russian troops are looting, defiling, raping, slaughtering, and burning innocent men, women and children. The aim will be to conjure up fake republics in Luhansk and Donetsk. Putin didn’t think, though, about how many Ukrainians would stay and fight.

The war is often described as ‘the Ukrainian conflict’ but it’s more a terrorist war against a democratic, free country

But we can’t win on our own: a military victory requires support from the West. Boris Johnson has stood up for Ukraine in a way that Nato has not. Johnson has courageously expressed his disdain for Putin, helping us stand up for our dignity and freedom. And British sanctions have demonstrated that Russians can no longer be accepted in civil society and that war crimes will not be tolerated. Yet we need more military support from Britain. The weapons provided so far are suitable for partisan warfare, for protecting small towns. We’re fighting the second largest army in the world: we need armoured vehicles and more powerful weapons.

The West talks about the need to avoid a third world war.

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