The situation in Ukraine is collapsing. The Russian army carries out attacks in the biggest cities of the country, far beyond the borders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk republics. The war is on, right in the heart of Europe, several decades after the last biggest crisis.
All started in the tormented region of Donbass, where we lost a friend, a photoreporter, an inspiration for us all. Since 2014 a bond of sympathy and solidarity connects us to those unfortunate people. For this reason we feel urged to share our thoughts on the current state of things, yet much bigger than us.
First of all, let’s get rid of all the doubts insinuated by those who’d label us pro-Ukrainian or pro-Russian.
Since the Donbass turmoils, eight years ago, the ruling nationalist government of Kiev has put scarce efforts in relieving the border situation. We kept seeing on one hand a constant show of power towards Moscow, on the other Ukraine’s failure to become a western democracy -that came out loud and clear in the judicial case of the murder of Andy Rocchelli and Andrey Mironov, in which Ukraine deliberately hindered the inquiries. Ukraine plays a very ambiguous role. Furthermore, a new NATO ally just next door would have been hard to ignore for the Kremlin.
That said, Putin’s military overreaction hints at an old-fashioned imperialistic dream. Deaths, miseries and atrocities will come: that’s a huge moral, historical and political responsibility.
We don’t back any government. We believe in peace and condemn any war, we always take the civilians’ side. In these hours our thoughts are with the Ukrainian people, who’re paying the highest price for a conflict they didn’t want.
Right after a painful pandemic, given all the intellectual means we nowadays dispose of, we deem such an invasion and territorial war a failure of international diplomacy. It shouldn’t happen, it shouldn’t happen anymore and definitely not here and now. We’re small ants in a hostile universe, can’t afford to damage one another.
Well, we haven’t been able to prevent this. We wish we’ll at least be able to be informed about these saddening events thanks to free, competent journalists, hopefully protected by both sides of the conflict; alas that’s rarely the case, as we learnt in 2014, when Andy and Andrey were targeted and killed by the Ukrainian army. Months of propaganda and lies are ahead of us.
Since public information exists, the best way to contain a war is a massive involvement of the public opinion. We, the public, must therefore be informed. Must get to know the truth. That’s why we need free press and protected journalists. We’re looking forward to reading your reports, hoping one day we’ll cease to call you heroes.