"Manifesto for Sustainable Peace": Ukrainian Civil Society's Response to the Question "What to Do with Russia?"
photo: Khrystyna Miskevych
"The support of our foreign partners is incredibly important for our victory. Part of the problem with this support is that Western partners are afraid to think about Russia in the past. Their colonized consciousness is intertwined with its romanticized image. Western societies do not believe that it is possible to somehow exclude Russia from international relations or trade its energy resources through a specialized agency without it. Because they are not used to thinking in terms of Libya or Iran, there is this rejection. Our task is to change this thinking." - Svyatoslav Pavliuk, Executive Director of the Association of Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine.
At the 10th Local Government Forum in Lviv, Sviatoslav Pavliuk and Oleksandr Yabchanka, a lieutenant in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, presented the "Manifesto for Sustainable Peace" developed by representatives of Ukrainian civil society.
"Three months ago I could not get out of bed, and now I am sitting here talking to you. This is my third injury in this war, and after recovery I will return to the front line, not because I miss it, but because it is necessary. In this war we need only victory. But I have doubts that victory for us is only reaching the borders of '91. In this case, the war will not end and Russian chauvinists will not stop. The answer to the question of what the end of the war means is in this October book," says Oleksandr Yabchanka.
"This publication has been developed by the Ukrainian side to debunk the myth of the great Russian culture. If Ukraine does not do this, Germany, France, Britain, and the United States will do it. That is, it will be done without us. When you, as local governments, are faced with the lack of understanding of your partners "what to do with Russia?", tell them that Ukraine has this vision. Here it is." - Sviatoslav addressed local governments and emphasized that they are now actually participants in international relations and a channel through which the Ukrainian position can be conveyed to Western societies and put pressure on their politicians.
"We hope that in your contacts with your partner organizations and cities abroad you will pay attention to the Manifesto for Sustainable Peace, of course, after other issues on the agenda of the cities," emphasized Svyatoslav Pavliuk.
Oleksandr Yabchanka emphasized that the war has been going on for several centuries, not ten years. Therefore, the "Manifesto for Sustainable Peace" is a concept that reflects Ukraine's position on ending this war and achieving sustainable peace. This is possible only if there are "deep, internal changes in the Russian Federation."
"I would like to ask you for two things: to convey the information from the "Manifesto for Sustainable Peace" to your foreign friends/partners and to continue supporting the defense forces." - summarized Oleksandr Yabchanka.