Three Years of War

Quick Hit: February 24, 2025

Three years ago today Ukrainians woke up to the sound of bombs and air raid sirens. The rest of the world woke up to a new reality - war in Europe. In Moldova, many awoke early in the morning to the distant sounds of Odesa and nearby Ukrainian cities under bombardment. Within 24 hours Ukraine was fighting across a front arching from the Belarusian border in the north all around to occupied Crimea in the south. At the same time Moldovan border crossings became overwhelmed by Ukrainians, overwhelmingly women and children, fleeing west seeking safety.

Three years later Europe stands at a new crossroads. The war still rages but it has been compounded by a growing diplomatic crisis as the United States abandons support for Ukraine and rhetorically appears prepared to support Russia’s war aims.

Today, the EU Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova Janis Mažeiks was joined by the ambassadors of EU member states and the United Kingdom along with Moldovan officials to lay flowers at the Embassy of Ukraine. They honored the many Ukrainians who gave their lives in the last 3 years defending their homeland.

Ambassador Janis Mažeiks in front of the Ukrainian Embassy Photo Source X

Moldovan President Maia Sandu released a statement on the anniversary of the war. She spoke of the bravery of Ukrainian defenders and reiterated the fact that Ukrainians are fighting not only for their freedom, but for Moldova’s as well. She spoke in English and the short address is worth watching in full.

Screenshot from President Sandu’s statement

The Embassies of Sweden, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, the United Kingdom, and others all made posts or statements or attended events commemorating the start of the war and condemning Russian’s unprovoked aggression.

The very notable absence was the United States. Acting chief of mission Chargé d’Affaires Daniela DiPierro did not attend the ceremony at the Ukrainian Embassy. The US Embassy made no public statements. Even more glaringly the US Embassy in Kyiv was also silent today on their official pages.

** Update / Correction: It’s come to my attention that Daniela DiPierro may have attended the ceremony but did not speak at it. Without any announcement from the US Embassy or method of requesting clarification from them (the Embassy has not been responding to requests for comment for some time) it’s not clear.

Lots of virtual ink has been spilt this week on the withdrawal of the United States from the Transatlantic security infrastructure set up after the Second World War - I don’t need to add more to that here. I will say that as an American I can only feel ashamed of my country in this moment. Perhaps I’ll dwell on that further in a future article or, more likely, an essay on my other Substack. I will certainly be coming back soon with a look at what all of this means for Moldova. For today, it is just worth underlining that while Moldova, Ukraine and the EU stand in solidarity on this 3rd anniversary they do so without the United States.

Three Years Ago

Back on February 24th 2022 conventional wisdom held that Kyiv would fall to the Russian onslaught within 72 hours. In Moldova, Ukrainians fleeing the war streamed across the overwhelmed borders at the same time as many Moldovans themselves fled west assuming that Ukraine would soon fold and that Moldova would be next.

But that isn’t what happened. Ukraine fought back and over the next few months turned the tide - first stopping Russian advances and then rolling them back. The battle for Kyiv proved that Russia would have no “special military operation” - and no easy war.

In Moldova some fled but many more rushed to the borders and received Ukrainians with food and blankets. People opened their homes, businesses, churches and community centers to refugees. The horrors of this war brought out the best in many Moldovans and the nation was quickly dubbed a “a small country with a big heart.”

Last summer I recorded two podcast episodes with my former business partner Vlad Șuleanschi about those early days. We discussed how people were shocked at the outbreak of war but also how quickly people mobilized to help. Here are the episodes in case you missed them:

Episode 3: War in Ukraine Part 1

Episode 4: War in Ukraine Part 2

This is for the ones who stood their ground…

Amidst the gloom that has been settling over Europe in recent days it is worth remembering one more aspect of that February three years ago. When Russia invaded Ukrainians of all ages and background rallied to military recruitment offices and weapons depots to pick up arms and defend their homes. One example, among many, was Andriy Khlyvnyuk, singer of the popular Ukrainian group BoomBox. When the war started Andriy and his bandmates canceled their American tour and returned home to fight. During the Battle of Kyiv he recorded a video singing the Ukrainian patriotic song “Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow” a cappella from the city under siege. This video went viral and turned into a collaboration (from afar) with Pink Floyd’s production of “Hey Hey Rise Up.” Andriy Khlyvnyuk was later wounded in the Battle for Kyiv.

While this song became iconic it was only one of hundreds of similar examples of patriotic resistance to the Russian onslaught. In Odesa, a local band brought their gear out onto the beach to play as city residents filled sandbags in preparation for the expected siege of that great city. They played Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life” as regular people worked to prepare their city for war.

In 2025 much of our energy has focused on the unfolding American betrayal both of Ukraine and the deep uncertainty about the future. Sometimes this conversation has jumped forward to a place where Ukraine is already lost and Russia ascendant. On this day our time is better focused on the last time the world predicted that Ukraine was doomed and on the courage those who fought back.

Слава Україні! Героям слава!