Montreal Ukrainians hope for more support, 3 years after Russian invasion

Three years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, many Ukrainians living in Montreal continue to seek peace for their homeland and are calling for increased support from Canada, their host country.

Yuliia Franivska arrived in Montreal in 2022, the same year the war broke out.

On Sunday, she attended a demonstration to show solidarity with her people, including her parents who remain in Ukraine.

Franivska's father, a former military officer, had to put his uniform back on and step up to help his country. Drawing from his experience, he now trains young soldiers to fight.

"My heart is broken and I cannot cry anymore," said Franivska. "It's very difficult to live and everyone, you don't know what will happen [to them]."

While she longs to return and contribute to her country's protection, the single mother feels a responsibility to stay in Canada.

"I'm here just for my son," she said.

Franivska believes Canada is already doing a lot to support her community.

"We are very thankful for Canada to let us to be here to save our lives, [the] lives of our children." 

But Maria Popova, associate professor of political science at McGill University, believes Canada should do more. 

"We've been supportive in spirit. We have also contributed, but in terms of contributions to the military aid to Ukraine, we're sort of bottom of the list of allies," she said. "Because we thought of the U.S. as a friendly ally guaranteeing our security, we haven't been investing in our own defence."

In recent weeks, Popova's noticed a shift in the political landscape, particularly following President Donald Trump's controversial statements about Russia and Ukraine — in which he called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a "dictator" and blamed Ukraine for initiating the war.

Popova says the U.S. has emerged as an adversary not just to Ukraine but to Europe and Canada.

"That's why Canada needs to step up, both for Ukraine's sake, but also for our own sake, because we are entering really dangerous times here," she said.

Popova advocates for a "stronger" partnership with Europe to find solutions to help Ukraine against Russian aggression and demonstrate that "a smaller country can withstand an attack on it by a bigger power."

"We're also sending a message to the U.S. that maybe it will be costly for them to pressure us in a similar kind of way," said Popova. 

She says Canada should ramp up its defence spending and devote it to Ukraine's defence. 

Eugene Czolij, honorary consul of Ukraine in Montreal, echoes Popova's sentiments regarding Canada's role in supporting Ukraine.

"I'd like Canada to provide effective and timely support to Ukraine in order to ensure that Ukraine can succeed and win this genocidal war that was launched three years ago," he said.

He emphasized the need for military assistance, particularly in protecting Ukraine's airspace and freeing occupied territories.

After three years of war, Czolij acknowledges the immense toll it continues to take on Ukrainians. 

"Clearly they are very concerned for the people that they left behind and they're living, obviously, very challenging times," he said.