Thousands took to the streets of Kyiv demanding that President Volodymyr Zelenskiy remain firm ahead of a meeting with Russia's Vladimir Putin. The pair are set to attend a Paris summit on the Donbass conflict.
Image: DW/O. Sawytsky
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Thousands of Ukrainians gathered in Kyiv on Sunday fearing a "capitulation" to Russia ahead of peace talks between the leaders of the two nations — Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Vladimir Putin — at a summit in Paris that begins tomorrow.
The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine will meet in the French capital in an attempt to make progress in finding a peaceful solution to the hostilities in eastern Ukraine.
For recently installed Ukrainian President Zelenskiy, the encounter with his more experienced Russian counterpart will be a key moment in his efforts to end more than five years of conflict with Kremlin-backed separatists in the Donbass region.
The Donbass region lies in the east of Ukraine and has been at the center of the conflict with Russian-backed separatists for over five years
Fears for novice president
While Moscow may also be seeking peace, there are concerns in Ukraine that Zelenskiy could cede too much ground to his opponent. As a result, Kyiv was packed with protesters holding placards with slogans such as "No to capitulation," "Stay away from Moscow" and "Russian gas is a noose around our necks" during the rally, led by some of Zelenskiy's political opponents.
The president's predecessor, Petro Poroshenko, who led Ukraine after Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and the breakout of the separatist conflict with backing from Moscow, was among those who called the protest.
Poroshenko said he had profound misgivings about the Russian president, particularly in terms of trust. "Our position is very simple," he told the crowd. "Don't believe Putin after all the bad things he did for Ukraine."
He also warned his successor: "Don't be afraid of Putin!"
Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko addresses the throng of protesters in KyivImage: picture-alliance/ZUMAPRESS.com/S. Glovny
Taras Kuzio, a security expert and professor at the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy, said Zelenskiy has already weakened his own position by agreeing to the talks even though Russia insists Crimea is non-negotiable.
Kuzio described the 41-year-old Zelenskiy, until recently a comedic actor, as "extremely naive about international relations."
Nevertheless, the president's spokeswoman, Yulia Mendel, said Zelenskiy would be firm with Putin at the peace summit.
"The first three steps that President Zelensky will take at a meeting in Paris: the terms and conditions of the return of captured Ukrainians; a real, not fake, ceasefire; and, of course, the withdrawal of foreign troops and bandit formations from the territory of Donbass," Mendel wrote on Facebook.
Peace hopes
The conflict has resulted in the deaths of some 14,000 people since the outbreak of hostilities in 2014.
The Kremlin wants to use the Paris summit to increase pressure on Zelenskiy to implement the 2015 Minsk peace deal, which gives the rebel-held regions more autonomy in exchange for ending the fighting.
Germany and France helped to broker that 2015 accord, but it has been consistently ignored.
Ukraine is the second country this weekend that saw anti-Russia demonstrations , with people gathering in Belarus' capital, Minsk, fearing closer ties with the Kremlin.
Make love, not war: Ukrainian-Russian love overcoming conflict
The Ukraine-Russia conflict is increasingly polarizing people of both countries. But these couples are bridging the nationality gap and growing stronger together.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Lina & Vitya
My mom is Russian, my dad is Ukrainian. They met each other at Kharkov State University and have lived together for more than 50 years now. My parents gave me that sense of friendship between people traveling everywhere. I think it’s one of the key moments - to understand each other we need to communicate with different people and to educate ourselves.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Arthur & Oksana
I'm Russian, but was born in Ukraine. Arthur is Ukrainian. We first met three years ago during a photography workshop and became friends. After mutual visits in several countries, Arthur moved to Moscow when we decided to live together. Now we work and travel together, visiting our friends and families in Russia, Ukraine and around the whole world.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Olga & Vladimir
Vladimir is a Russian contemporary artist, Olga is a ballerina. She was born in Kirovogradskaya region, Ukraine. They live together in Khimki, Russia, with their newborn baby. They were one of the first couples who agreed to be photographed when our mutual friend posted my picture on Facebook.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Yulia & Edik
Yulia, born in Ukraine, and Edik, born in Russia, are refugees from Donbass and live in Moscow with their 4-year-old son Dima. The two of them have relatives in both Russia and Ukraine. Because of their son, the couple decided to flee the war - leaving their relatives behind - and move to Moscow. That's where Life Links reporter Emily portrayed Yulia for the episode #prideandprejudice.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Dima & Sasha
Dima is from Russia, Sasha was born in Ukraine. Sasha is a member of Femen and the first time they met was when Dima, as a photographer, came to do a report about Femen in Kiev for the New York Times. Since then they have been in a relationship. Some time later Sasha left Ukraine and asked for political asylum in France. Since then Dima and Sasha have lives in Paris.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Dima & Vlada
Dima and Vlada are good friends of mine. I've known them for ages, but I never thought about them as participants for my projects; I just forgot their story. Dima was born in Moscow, Russia. Vlada is from Kiev, Ukraine. They met each other in Georgia and had a long distance relationship in the beginning. Finally, the couple decided to live together in US, where they had their baby Lev a year ago.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Maksim & Darya
Darya (from Ukraine) and Maksim's (from Russia) love story started on a summer day in Voronezh, Russia. Using the same ride-sharing service, they spent 7 hours together. Maxim said it was love at first sight. When I photographed them, Darya was just back from a trip, so the couple had been apart for several days. They were hugging and kissing each other and it looked very natural and beautiful.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Valery & Sveta
Valery is from Odessa, Ukraine. Sveta was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia. They met in Odessa when Sveta came to visit her friend. They became friends first, but a year later they got married. They are both interested in yoga, different cultures and esoteric things. I loved being in their small apartment in Saint Petersburg because you could feel all the harmony and beauty surrounding them.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Sasha & Lena
Alexander is from Krasnodar, Russia. Lena was born in Kiev, Ukraine. They met on vacation in Greece in 2013, a couple of months before the Euromaidan demonstrations started in Kiev. After spending a day together, it made them think about each other. A year later Lena moved to Moscow to live with Alexander. Their relationship became even stronger in the face of the problems between the two nations.
