The War In Ukraine Did Not Start Three Years Ago
Remembering what was as we focus on what needs to be
Today many in the world will report, comment, and critique that it’s been three years since the war began in Ukraine. Unfortunately, however, this conversation isn’t entirely accurate.
In fact, Ukrainians don’t refer to February 24, 2022 as the day the war started. When you speak with Ukrainians, you will notice they refer to when the “full-scale invasion” began. The difference is on purpose, and it’s an important reminder for all of us.
The truth is, by the time February 24, 2022 rolled around, Ukraine had been at war for eight years. It was eight years earlier Russia invaded southern Ukraine and stole the Crimea peninsula. After that, there was a strong attempt by Russia to destabilize much of the border, and chunks were torn out of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions through further invasions. Today does not mark three years since the beginning of the war. Ukraine has been at war for eleven years.
But there was something different about February 24 three years ago. It was the day Russia launched its next move: a massive, unprovoked, full-scale attack on the entire country.
Many assumed that it was all about the land. That the fighting would be on the battlefield with the ultimate goal of a fairly straight-forward change of ownership for Ukraine. However, it quickly became very clear that this was much more than a land grab. Apartment buildings were destroyed. A maternity hospital was blown up. A missile hit a train station where hundreds waited to evacuate their families. A bomb shelter was targeted and hundreds of women and children were murdered in an instant.
As we all watched, it became clear that Russia wasn’t simply out to get Ukraine, but was bent on destroying Ukrainians.
There was Bucha – bullet holes in the backs of citizens who were literally running for their lives. There was Kherson – the destruction of a dam which put 230 square miles of Ukraine under water. There is Zaporizhzhia – where regular attacks are made against a nuclear power plant. And sadly, these are only a few of literally hundreds and hundreds of examples.
The world, three years ago, was rightly horrified. Support poured in from around the globe. The Ukrainian flag was seen everywhere because everyone could see what was happening in plain sight. Everyone understood that what they were witnessing was evil, and everyone wanted to help alleviate the suffering. Everyone was clear about who the beaten and bruised neighbor was in the story.
The politics of this kind of thing are difficult. They will always be difficult. Help is expensive, and how much one country gets involved in another’s war is always going to require a lot of talk and negotiations and reevaluations. Peace talks are complicated. But Ukrainians know this. Ukrainians understand perfectly well that the obvious solutions are not necessarily so simple.
The heartbreak of recent days has highlighted that, in their struggle to survive—not only as a nation but also as a people—what Ukrainians want from their allies is not just help, but a clear acknowledgement of who it is that actually needs the help, and who it is that actually must be stopped in order for this war to actually end in a lasting peace. We must not forget the atrocities of the last eleven years as we look for peace in the future. Ukraine needs our love in the peace process.
The beautiful thing is, that love is actually shining through among the churches. Praise God for the faith and hope we have in Jesus! And those of us working with UBI are blessed to have a front-row seat to the incredible things that are happening through the partnerships between the churches on opposite sides of the ocean. Where the world struggles through painful political and economic limitations, God's church has not hesitated to answer the call of help from its Ukrainian neighbor. Thanks to the ongoing donations of Christians on the other side of the world, people are still receiving food and other aid, people are hearing God’s word, the churches are working together, and the churches are growing. To borrow Paul's words from 2 Timothy 2:9, "the word of God is not bound" by the world's politics, conflicts, or evil. God’s word has not been bound in Ukraine. Three years into the full-scale invasion, the churches are still shining like stars thanks to the beautiful family of God.
Let us continue to hope and pray for true peace. Let us continue to love our neighbors as Christ has loved us. And let us please not grow tired of doing good.
—Brandon Price
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Gal. 6:9–10)