LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainians continue to repel a full-fledged Russian invasion throughout the country's northern, eastern, and southern borders. Residents of Lviv, Ukraine's westernmost cultural hub, are now joining the fight.
The streets of this normally bustling university town of over a million people have been almost deserted since the bombing began last week. The exceptions have been long lines extending around banks, pharmacies, and supermarkets, as well as thousands of individuals trying to find a way out of the nation at the railway station.
Over the weekend, there was a noticeable increase in security around town. Roadblocks appeared near refugee reception and logistical centers, as well as transit hubs such as the airport and train station. Some of the city's most popular cafés, restaurants, and stores have been converted into bomb shelters, with armed guards at the front, forcing entrants to show their passport and surrender any weapons they may be carrying at the door - even to pick up a cup of coffee.
More men dressed in military fatigues may be seen everywhere Рat new checkpoints, in public places, and inside caf̩s. However, not everyone clad in a uniform is a member of the country's regular military. After Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared martial law and issued a general call to arms for all men aged 18 to 60 on Thursday, any man or woman ready to fight can sign up to acquire a weapon and fatigues to join the mobilization.
Some are trained troops who have spent years fighting Russians in Crimea or the Donbas regions of Ukraine, where Russia invaded in 2014. Others are newly minted militiamen and women who have been undergoing weekend combat trainings as part of local territory defense groups formed to prepare for a worst-case scenario – one that the country is already facing.
"We're waiting for a train south," said a member of the Ukrainian army who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not have formal authority to speak to the press. He remarked, with piercing blue eyes, a well-worn uniform, and a cigarette casually dangling from his lips, "we will not return to Lviv until Russia leaves our nation." "Every aspect of it."
Ukraine has been at war with Russia since President Vladimir Putin dispatched troops in 2014, but the fighting and devastation have been almost entirely contained to Crimea and the Donbas. Almost the last eight years, the violence in those areas has killed over 14,000 people. Many more people have died since last week, and tens of thousands more Ukrainians have been displaced throughout the country or have fled across the border into neighboring Poland and Hungary.
While the majority of the population was dissatisfied with the impasse, they were able to preserve a semblance of normalcy outside of the disputed territory. Many people have expressed a renewed commitment to not just stop the current Russian invasion, but also to push back against the forces that have occupied Crimea and the Donbas for years.
And more fighters from this city and every region of Ukraine are lining up to join their compatriots in the regions of Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Odessa, where the majority of Russian forces have amassed, to engage in street warfare with a global superpower that outmaneuvers and outguns them on almost every measurable metric.
"We will fight and win," a reservist said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he did not have formal authority to speak to the press. He was standing next to a big line of buses, which were bringing hundreds more combatants to the region. He, like many of the males there, claimed to have assisted his family's women and children flee to safety before submitting himself for service. And, despite the fact that he hadn't seen action in years, he said he was anxious to get to the front lines and help put an end to the onslaught on his beloved Ukraine.
When asked about the US response to the war, he smiled and stated, "American javelins are good," before becoming more serious. "Thank you for your help, President Biden. It is beneficial."
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