Three years of war in Ukraine: "The talks are dangerous"

Sorrow, anger, and fighting spirit. Three years after Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainians in Sweden live with the war's pain and anger over the USA's dialogue with Moscow. Prisoners of war are being tortured and children are being kidnapped – the war continues, reminds Ukrainian Alyona Kashyna.

» Published: February 23 2025

Three years of war in Ukraine: "The talks are dangerous"
Photo: Privat/Francisco Seco/AP

Last time Kashyna visited her war-torn homeland was last summer, when she and her partner drove there a car bought by volunteers in Sweden. Then it became – once again – clear to her what her relatives and friends are going through.

The robot attacks, air raid warnings, and power outages. It's tough and mentally exhausting. Ukrainians have lived with it for three years, says Kashyna, who is vice chairman of the Nordic Ukraine Forum and works on sustainability issues on a daily basis.

Sad date

Kashyna came to Sweden 16 years ago to take a master's degree, but has often been back in Ukraine. She says she is proud of the Ukrainians' courage and resilience and describes the three-year anniversary of the full-scale invasion as "a sad date".

So many lives have been erased, so much suffering has been caused, she says.

And what has happened in recent weeks is very alarming, or frightening. The talks between the USA and Russia, which are held behind the backs of those affected, are dangerous. They legitimize war criminal Putin, who is wanted (by the International Criminal Court ICC).

What do you think of Volodymyr Zelenskyj, who was called a "dictator" by USA's Donald Trump?

He is the democratically elected president who has stayed and led Ukraine during the difficult years. According to the constitution, elections cannot be held during wartime, and Zelenskyj has the support of a majority of the population. It's astonishing that the US president claims otherwise and plays into Russia's hands.

Misses "everything"

The anger towards Russia is shared by Tanya Lytovchenko, an IT engineer, and Iana Zelenska, a director from Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine. Lytovchenko came to Sweden from Vuhledar in Donetsk 12 years ago. She says that the night of February 24 three years ago was the last time she slept well.

My mom has spent three years in a bomb shelter, without seeing the sun. And now the Russians have occupied Vuhledar and taken her Ukrainian passport, she says.

A whole generation is destroyed. And the talks between Russia and the USA are absurd, like when parents decide whom their children should marry.

When the war broke out, Lytovchenko went to a church in Stockholm where collections were organized for Ukraine. She saw stations for women, children, the elderly, and military personnel – but none for animals. This led to her starting Paws of Peace, an organization that regularly sends food and other supplies to animal shelters in Ukraine.

Angry with Trump

The commitment is repeated with Iana Zelenska, who ran a theater in Kharkiv with her actor husband and daughter before the war. But when the war began, it turned out to be too difficult to take her son, who is wheelchair-bound, up and down to the bomb shelters.

We got help from friends to flee to Sweden. It's good, but I would have liked to stay and cook for the soldiers at our theater, she says.

What do you miss the most?

Everything. Our house in Kharkiv, the culture, my work at the theater. And my friends who are dead.

The feelings on the three-year anniversary of the war outbreak are dominated by anger.

Right now, I'm angry with Trump. I don't understand why he says what he does. And Russia is a monster.

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine, but the Russian forces met strong resistance and a multi-year war ensued. Russian forces entered the neighboring country as early as 2014, which led to the illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and a simmering conflict in Donbass in the east.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyj's mandate formally expired on May 21, 2024, after five years in office. The fact that a new presidential election was not held the previous autumn is due to the war laws in Ukraine.

Russia's propaganda media have since described it as Zelenskyj "defiantly" clinging to power. President Vladimir Putin has tried to suggest that Ukraine does not have a legitimate leader, or that there are legal obstacles to negotiations. Putin has also previously spread lies about the democratically elected government being a "Nazi regime" that commits genocide against ethnic Russians.

USA's new president Donald Trump claimed during the election campaign that he could end the Ukraine war quickly. In recent weeks, his administration has upset the Western world with statements that NATO membership for Ukraine is not currently an option and that a return to the country's borders from before 2014 is "unrealistic". Trump has also initiated a dialogue with Putin about Ukraine, which Kyiv and Europe see as being excluded from, and has falsely claimed that Zelenskyj is a dictator.

Tags

TTT
By TTThis article has been altered and translated by Sweden Herald

More news

Verdict Against Le Pen Casts
2 MIN READ

Verdict Against Le Pen Casts Doubt on Presidential Ambitions

UAE Court Sentences Three Uzbeks
1 MIN READ

UAE Court Sentences Three Uzbeks to Death for Rabbi's Murder

Central Asian Nations Resolve Fergana
1 MIN READ

Central Asian Nations Resolve Fergana Valley Dispute

1,001 Killed in Gaza After
1 MIN READ

1,001 Killed in Gaza After Ceasefire Ends, Health Officials Report

Democrats Seek New Leadership as
6 MIN READ

Democrats Seek New Leadership as Trump Dominates US Politics

Genre image
1 MIN READ

Explosion in Spanish Coal Mine Claims Five Lives

Families Hold Vigil at Bangkok
2 MIN READ

Families Hold Vigil at Bangkok Skyscraper Collapse Site

Swedish Man Extradited to Norway
1 MIN READ

Swedish Man Extradited to Norway in Major Drug Trafficking Case

Netanyahu Aides Detained in Qatargate
1 MIN READ

Netanyahu Aides Detained in Qatargate Probe

Marine Le Pen Barred from
3 MIN READ

Marine Le Pen Barred from 2027 Election After EU Funds Verdict

Zelensky Prepares for Possible Ukrainian
1 MIN READ

Zelensky Prepares for Possible Ukrainian Election This Summer

Three Missing US Soldiers in
1 MIN READ

Three Missing US Soldiers in Lithuania Found Dead

Russia Accuses Ukraine of Power
2 MIN READ

Russia Accuses Ukraine of Power Line Attacks Amid Drone Strikes

Israel Urges Palestinians in Southern
1 MIN READ

Israel Urges Palestinians in Southern Gaza to Relocate to al-Mawasi

Iran Vows Powerful Response if
1 MIN READ

Iran Vows Powerful Response if US Launches Attack

Three Found Dead in Southern
1 MIN READ

Three Found Dead in Southern Norway; Police Investigate Link

Netanyahu Appoints New Security Chief
1 MIN READ

Netanyahu Appoints New Security Chief Despite Court Block and Protests

Myanmar Earthquake Claims Over 2,000
2 MIN READ

Myanmar Earthquake Claims Over 2,000 Lives, Thousands Injured

Le Pen's Presidential Hopes in
3 MIN READ

Le Pen's Presidential Hopes in Jeopardy as Fraud Verdict Looms

Trump Accuses Zelenskyj of Backing
1 MIN READ

Trump Accuses Zelenskyj of Backing Out of US Mineral Deal

Zelensky Thanks Stubb for Finland's
2 MIN READ

Zelensky Thanks Stubb for Finland's Support After Trump Golf Diplomacy

Ice Storm Leaves 500,000 Without
1 MIN READ

Ice Storm Leaves 500,000 Without Power Across US and Canada

Islamic Extremists Suspected in Deadly
1 MIN READ

Islamic Extremists Suspected in Deadly Attack on Burkina Faso Soldiers

Trump Hints at Third Term
1 MIN READ

Trump Hints at Third Term Despite Constitutional Limits

Erna Solberg Witnesses Ukraine's War
1 MIN READ

Erna Solberg Witnesses Ukraine's War Devastation on Frontline Journey

US Students Face Deportation Over
3 MIN READ

US Students Face Deportation Over Alleged Pro-Palestinian Support

Red Cross Condemns Israeli Attack
1 MIN READ

Red Cross Condemns Israeli Attack on Ambulance Workers in Rafah

Trump Warns of Strikes if
1 MIN READ

Trump Warns of Strikes if Iran Rejects Peace Deal Proposal

Trump Frustrated with Putin Over
1 MIN READ

Trump Frustrated with Putin Over Ukraine, Threatens New Tariffs

Erdogan Urges PKK to Disarm
1 MIN READ

Erdogan Urges PKK to Disarm Without Delay

Tsunami Warning Lifted After 7.1
1 MIN READ

Tsunami Warning Lifted After 7.1 Earthquake Near Tonga

Netanyahu Urges Hamas to Disarm
2 MIN READ

Netanyahu Urges Hamas to Disarm in Ceasefire Talks

Norwegian Rocket Test Ends in
2 MIN READ

Norwegian Rocket Test Ends in Crash but Deemed a Success by Isar Aerospace

Sudanese Army Takes Control of
2 MIN READ

Sudanese Army Takes Control of Khartum as RSF Withdraws

Israeli Defense Intercepts Yemeni Robot
1 MIN READ

Israeli Defense Intercepts Yemeni Robot as Air Raid Sirens Sound

Netanyahu Heads to EU Despite
1 MIN READ

Netanyahu Heads to EU Despite ICC Arrest Warrant

US Pledges Strong Military Presence
1 MIN READ

US Pledges Strong Military Presence in Taiwan Strait to Deter China

Greenland's Prime Minister Firmly Rejects
2 MIN READ

Greenland's Prime Minister Firmly Rejects Trump's Takeover Claims

Israeli Airstrike in Gaza Kills
1 MIN READ

Israeli Airstrike in Gaza Kills Eight, Including Five Children

Grave Cleanup Sparks South Korea's
1 MIN READ

Grave Cleanup Sparks South Korea's Largest Forest Fire