UCCA Illinois: Only US, European pressure can compel Putin to end war

The Ukrainian community in Illinois is urging Americans not to let the Thanksgiving holiday dull the public focus on ongoing peace talks around Russia’s war against Ukraine, local outlet Eyewitness News reports.

As the Russo-Ukrainian war soon enters its fourth year with no sign of Moscow willing to engage in meaningful diplomacy, community leaders say international attention remains paramount. 

“The positive is that the whole of Europe finally came together as one bloc. And they had; they all participated in negotiations with the United States,” said Mariya Dmytriv-Kapeniak, President of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) Illinois Division.

She emphasized that sustained U.S.-European coordination is essential both to ending the war and to exerting pressure on Russia’s leadership, which she stressed holds the power to put an end to the aggression. 

“Ukrainians are not going to give up territories, not going to give up their freedom. If they wanted to concede that would happen back in 2022,” Dmytriv-Kapeniak said.