Donald Trump’s election in November has left some of Ukraine’s supporters around the world feeling despondent, helpless – and worse, withdrawing from the fight.
Some stopped watching the news. Others fled social media. Ukrainians understand such feelings very well. No one is more concerned or affected by Trump’s rise. But Ukrainians can’t afford to withdraw. How can they when their existence is at stake?
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Ukrainians have warned for three years that if the forces of tyranny aren’t stopped in Ukraine, Western democracies would be next. They were right. Fascists didn’t need military force to gain power. They used subtler tricks like lies and social media manipulation.
The solution is the same as before. If you want to fight for democracy in your own community, it must be defended in Ukraine – ground zero of this global war.
In January, Russia’s forces suffered an astonishing 148 killed and wounded per square kilometer captured.
1 in 6 Russian losses have come since Nov. 5
Ukrainians need your support more than ever. US military aid is in doubt. Trump has put Russian sympathizers in top US government positions. Meanwhile, the genocidal dictator Putin has escalated his “meat assaults” and aerial barrages to a fever pitch. Ukraine lost another 325 square kilometers of territory to Russian forces in January. Ukrainians are being killed in their homes by daily barrages of drones, bombs and missiles.
But Ukraine fights on – more effectively than ever. Ukrainian forces have inflicted over 140,000 Russian casualties since the Nov. 5 US election alone, according to Ukraine’s General Staff. That’s a sixth of the total enemy casualties of the full-scale war.
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The terrorist state bought its advances at a shocking price. In January, its forces suffered an astonishing 148 killed and wounded per square kilometer captured. This is over 100 times the rate in World Wars I and II, and 1,000 times that of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
Putin’s losses, in fact, are the worst by far of any modern war as a portion of gained territory, according to figures from analyst Volodymyr Dacenko.
75-90% of drones come from donations
Especially remarkable, the evisceration of Russia’s war machine is being achieved thanks largely to donations. Ukraine’s FPV (first-person-view) drones typically inflict 80-90% or more of visually confirmed Russian combat losses, according to data from open-source analyst Andrew Perpetua.
And 75% of those FPV drones come from donations, according to Ukrainian military reporter Yuriy Butusov. What’s more, 90% of Ukraine’s recon drones critical for targeting strikes also come from donations, Butusov says.
In three years of war, donations have fueled Ukraine’s development of the largest and most advanced military drone industry on the planet. Ukrainian drone makers are inundated with pleas from NATO countries and businesses to share technology and know-how.
Donations help hold the line
At the front, Ukrainian soldiers have told me that without donations for drones and other supplies, the front line would have collapsed long ago.
Why does Ukraine need donations when it gets plenty of foreign military aid? That aid doesn’t come close to covering the needs of fighting a superpower bent on genocide. Much promised foreign aid is painfully slow to arrive.
In February 2024, the Drone Coalition group of allied countries promised to send Ukraine a million drones. A year later, a tiny fraction of that has arrived.
Instead of supporting Ukraine’s innovative drone makers and their battle-sharpened technology, the West tends to prioritize sending small numbers of its own often-ineffective drones. Meanwhile, two-thirds of Ukraine’s drone-making capacity is curtailed due to a lack of funds.
Soldiers go to battle in their own vehicles
On a recent visit with Ukrainian defenders, I met highly trained specialists defending one of the country’s most critical sites. They drove to battle positions in their own vehicles. Soldiers donate their pay to buy equipment and take time from fighting to make videos asking for donations.
A volunteer and I delivered crowdfunded drones to the front from the Wild Hornets, one of Ukraine’s largest charities producing FPV drones. Our volunteers raise funds by selling merch and holding raffles and other fundraisers. This support has allowed Wild Hornets to inflict $1.44 billion in estimated enemy losses and create ground-breaking technology, such as the world’s fastest combat drone.
Wild Hornets aren’t unique. Other volunteer groups like HeroCar and the 69th Sniffing Brigade have funded hundreds of vehicles and other critical supplies for the front. Ukraine fights for its existence thanks in very large part to the generosity and determination of ordinary people world-wide. When has such a thing happened before?
I never met a Ukrainian who said they wanted to give up.
Thousands of rescuers risked their lives
I saw this spirit when I was in Kyiv in July. A volunteer and I were returning from a tour of the ruins of the capital’s northern suburbs – still being rebuilt after a month of Russian occupation in 2022.
An air raid alert was in progress. Suddenly there was saw a puff of smoke in the sky and the sound of a thud. Smoke rose beyond some office towers. We learned a Russian cruise missile had hit Kyiv’s Okhmatdyt Hospital, Ukraine’s largest children’s medical facility. We were 600 meters away when it struck.
Ten thousand residents came to help pull screaming children from the rubble and bring supplies. Risking their lives, they stayed even after air raid sirens activated again warning of a new attack.
Inspiring Ukrainians
By December when I was in Kyiv again, most days were interrupted with numerous air raid alerts and clatters of air defense fire. These barrages are part of Putin’s genocidal plan to destroy Ukraine’s energy facilities, make life unbearable and pressure Ukrainians to come back to Moscow’s prison.
The power was out for hours as temperatures fell. But I never met a Ukrainian who said they wanted to give up. Instead, I saw people go about their lives, throng Kyiv’s incredible restaurants and cafés, and donate or volunteer to support Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
When the world feels overwhelming, remember the spirit and courage of Ukrainians, for whom the fight for democracy is life or death. Each of us has the power to make an impact. We can see the proof in Ukraine every day.
The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.
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