Highlights
- Russia has amassed around 100,000 troops on Ukraine's border, leading to increased fears of conflict
- As tensions mount, Russians and Ukrainians in Australia are expressing their concern over hostilities and damage already done
- 'Orchestrated situation could turn from purely propaganda into absolute chaos': Russian political expert Dr Leonid Petrov from the Australian National University
Ukrainian Australian Olena Lima tells SBS Russian that she has watched on anxiously at the build-up of Russian troops along Ukraine’s borders in recent weeks.
The marketing specialist, who migrated to Australia 11 years ago, says it's "unimaginable" that Russia and Ukraine could be on the brink of war.
It's a sentiment she believes is shared across the Russian-speaking community in Australia, which includes people from Ukraine, Russia and other former Soviet republics.
“When I talk to my Australian friends about what is happening between Ukraine and Russia, when they ask me what I think about Russians, I always say – imagine the same situation between Australia and New Zealand," Ms Lima says.
"We are from different countries with different economies, but we have always been so connected with each other. It is very difficult to imagine that suddenly the Australians would begin to hate the New Zealanders.
The situation is exactly the same because we also have a common culture, common roots, and a common history.
At the same time, she says that recently she has noticed some aggression in local Russian-speaking Facebook groups.
"Just a few days ago, in one women's Facebook group, someone asked whether it would be reasonable to get an Australian visa for her parents in Ukraine now, to prepare for the worst, and she got a lot of comments, not all of them friendly.
“For example, one Russian woman wrote 'go to your Ukrainian group and ask there'. And there were similar not very kind remarks from the Ukrainian group members. I mean, this person came for advice about her parents, her family, and received all this negativity. This is very wrong."
Matthew from Sydney in Ukrainian embroidered shirt 'vyshyvanka' getting ready for the Harmony Day at his Childcare. Matthew's mum is Russian, and his dad is Ukrainian. Source: Photo credit: Victoria Stankeeva
'We have nothing to fight over'
Victoria Ivanets, whose mum is Russian and dad is Ukrainian, says there are many others like her with relatives and friends in both countries.
The Sydney resident's relatives on her father's side still live in Ukraine, and she recalls with great warmth how every summer she would visit her Ukrainian grandparents.
“Ukrainians are so hospitable, they are people with big souls. I remember the huge feasts every time we visited, there were always some kind of significant event, someone was baptised, someone celebrated their birthday, and people from the whole village would get together, dress up and celebrate."
“My sisters and brothers live in Vladivostok (a city in Russia's far east) and my cousins live in Dnipro (a city in central Ukraine). We have nothing to fight over," Ms Ivanets says.
Victoria's grandmother and her younger cousins, circa 1970s, Vakhnivka village, Vinnytsia Oblast, Ukraine Source: V.Ivanets
"I have so many pleasant memories from my childhood. You know, the memory of how the first varenik (Ukrainian boiled dumpling) tastes. There is nothing better in the world than my Grandma's vareniks."
'Damage to relations that will be difficult to fix'
Slava Grigoriev from Adelaide also considers himself half Ukrainian. He says that his mother grew up near Kiev, and then moved to Moscow for work and married his dad there.
“We often travelled to Kiev in my childhood, we have many relatives there. So it is very disturbing to read about what is happening at the border now, this demonstration of force," Mr Grigoriev says.
"Even though Russia says that all her troops are on the Russian side and they are not going to attack, this situation is disastrous for Ukrainian-Russian relations. And such actions on the part of the Russian government cause even more damage to relations, which will be very difficult to fix.”
Petr Kuzmin is a political activist and founder of the Svoboda Alliance AU&NZ movement, which has staged protests in Australia in support of Alexei Navalny and other political prisoners in Russia.
Petr Kuzmin at one of the rallies in support of Alexei Navalny in Melbourne Source: Supplied by P.Kuzmin
Mr Kuzmin says that his mother is from Sevastopol, a Crimean city. While he wasn't very happy when Crimea was ceded to Ukraine in 1991 after the collapse of the USSR, the events of 2014 aroused much stronger feelings in him.
“I believe that the way Russia annexed Crimea is a crime, and first of all, a crime against its own people, because it created such huge problems for the Russians themselves for many years to come," he said.
"I consider Ukraine to be our brotherly nation and I'm very sorry that our relations have deteriorated so much over the years, and we will need a very long time to restore these relations.”
Mr Kuzmin says that from his very first day in Australia, he has tried to take part in conversations about Russia, to explain in a friendly way that not all Russians support the current Putin regime, and that there are many who believe in democratic values.
“It seems to me that this is especially important now, when the Putin regime is becoming more and more aggressive and hostile," Mr Kuzmin says.
"It is important to show that we Russians are not aggressive, we are not against Australia and the Western world, we share all those universal values of human rights, freedom of free speech and free conscience.”
Tatiana Bonch, a writer and human rights activist from Sydney, was born in the Ukrainian city of Simferopol, graduated from university in Moscow, and now actively cooperates with the PEN Moscow, an organisation that protects the rights of writers and journalists.
Ms Bonch says that recently her workload has increased significantly, as more and more people are being prosecuted or declared foreign agents in Russia because of their political views.
She says she now sees much less support for the actions of the Russian authorities than she did during the annexation of Crimea.
“In my opinion, this is the aggressive behaviour of the Russian authorities in two aspects - both in terms of building up military forces and in terms of their ultimatum to NATO. I see even among my friends on social media, both Russians and Ukrainians, less and less support for the Russian government.
"Recently my whole Facebook feed was filled with the Ukrainian flags on the people's profiles to show their support," Ms Bonch says.
Ukrainian rally in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, on Jan. 30, 2022. Source: AAP Image/Michael Kuenne/PRESSCOV/Sipa USA
'Mr Putin wants respect'
Russian political expert Dr Leonid Petrov, from the Australian National University, says that the current situation is very harmful for Russians and Ukrainians living in Australia, who haven't seen their loved ones for more than two years due to the pandemic.
For our compatriots living in Australia, this situation seems, if not catastrophic, then very painful.
"People couldn't visit their families because the Australian borders were closed, and it's still not so easy to travel. And now people read the news that the Australian Embassy is being evacuated from Kiev.
"This conflict was designed so that as many people as possible would be involved in the discussion of this topic. Whether the conflict will move to the next stage or not depends, of course, on politicians, but also on chance.
"With such a concentration of troops, if someone presses the wrong button or perceives the actions of the enemy not quite adequately, then this orchestrated situation can turn from purely propaganda into absolute chaos and real war with terrible consequences."
A similar opinion, that the situation could escalate into an armed conflict, is expressed by another Russian expert, Dr Alexei Muraviev, Associate Professor of National Security and Strategic Studies at Curtin University, Perth.
“When there is such a concentration of military forces on both sides of the border, the possibility of some unforeseen actions can't be ruled out," Dr Muraviev says.
“Short and to the point, Mr Putin wants respect. And we can discuss for a long time what Mr Putin personally understands by respect, but there is certainly an element that he wants to be spoken to on an equal footing, to be listened to, and not just listened to, but listened to on one's toes.”
Last Friday, said the troops amassed at the border were “not a threat” but a “warning” to Ukraine.
On Sunday, Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia Volodymyr Shalkivskyi , accused him of making “false” and “strange” arguments to justify the build-up of Russian troops on the country’s border.
