Ukrainians are tired, run down by the emotional toll of the invasion and the physical toll of sleepless nights due to air raid sirens, explosions and the screeching sounds of attack drones. “It was a long night,” is a common remark you will hear in Kyiv.
So, US President Donald Trump’s decision to give Russia 50 days to agree to a ceasefire or face “very severe tariffs… at about 100%” has not gone down well.
One of Ukraine’s most prominent politicians, Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko, asked “why such a delay?” while speaking on German television. Russian attacks had become “more intense”, he said, and more people could be killed in that 50-day period.
President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke to Trump after the president said “top-of-the-line weapons” would be sent from the US via Nato partners in Europe, and thanked him for his “willingness to support Ukraine”. If implemented, the “secondary tariffs” would hit countries that buy Russia’s oil exports.
But Ukrainian MP Kira Rudik says Trump’s announcement was “bitttersweet”, as it gave Putin another 50 days to continue his deadly bombardment and maintain his offensive on the front line.
“It is very hard and very personal for us because we don’t know if some of us will survive for these 50 days,” she told the BBC.
More than 230 civilians were killed in Ukraine last month and many more wounded, according to UN human rights monitors – the biggest number for three years, as Russia unleashed record numbers of drone and missile attacks.
Among the weapons being sent to Ukraine are Patriot air defence batteries to help protect cities from attack.
“[There] hasn’t been a single fact that would prove Russia wants to stop the war. Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire, we have done everything by the book,” Rudik added.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday that Trump’s announcement was “very serious” and warned such decisions were seen by Kyiv “not as a signal for peace but as a signal to continue the war”.
There was little faith in Trump’s promises on the streets of Kyiv.
Residents Yuliia and Alisa said they both worried about his relationship with the Kremlin.
“I don’t believe it is real help for Ukraine… it’s all about his ego,” Yuliia told the BBC. “I guess these four years [of Trump’s presidency] are going to be very tough for Ukraine.”
“Everything that happened during the last six months just proved that nothing will change despite what Trump does or does not say,” Alisa added.
Nina, who also lives in Kyiv, was more optimistic that additional weapons sent by the US and paid for by Nato member states in Europe could “speed up the end of the war”.
It could have come to an end sooner if Russia had not have been helped by allies like North Korea and China, she said.
Artem, whose father is serving in the Ukrainian army, was “hoping for the best”.
“People say a lot, let’s see how it goes. I hope that everything will be the way we want. And we want peace, for the war in Ukraine to end, and for all the guys to return alive,” he said.
Walking around the wall encircling St Michael’s monastery in Kyiv, photos of the fallen stare out at you – some were taken before the war, featuring men and women posing with family members and pets.
As Trump talks of imposing new tariffs on Russia, the war continues – with these images a reminder of the soldiers who will never come home.
