THIS INSIDE UKRAINE STORY IS FROM KYIV.

* All images and answers in the feature were provided by the WOW Woman, unless otherwise specified.

INSIDE UKRAINE SERIES: A SNAPSHOT, A DAY-IN-THE-LIFE, A GLIMPSE OF WHAT IT’S LIKE TO LIVE, RESIST, SURVIVE AND PERSEVERE IN A NATION UNDER ATTACK.

GLORY TO THE UKRAINIAN WOW WOMEN, FOR SUPPORTING THEIR COUNTRY AND BRINGING UKRAINE CLOSER TO VICTORY.

“When I write about Ukraine now, I realize that I am chronicling the lives of those who will shape the future of a nation in the midst of a profound transformation. Ukraine is currently navigating the complexities of self-governance amidst the turmoil of war, and it stands on the cusp of significant growth and development. Even under relentless bombardment, Ukrainians are actively deciding on the traditions they wish to establish, free from russian influence, and addressing the toxic legacies left by their murderous neighbor. Central to this transformation is the imperative to raise future generations who neither forget nor fall victim to the looming threat of russian expansionism. Ukrainian intellectuals are thus engaged in discussions and debates about their national past while simultaneously envisioning and dreaming of a brighter future for Ukraine. This is all undertaken under the constant threat of russian attacks. I am deeply impressed by the resilience of my compatriots. Despite the continuous awe I feel, their resilience does not surprise me.

Consider my Inside Ukraine WOW Woman, Ms. Daria Synhaievska. A member of the graduating class of 2022, Daria entered the real world during the full-scale russian invasion of her home. Her Political Science degree and university research experience were immediately put to the pressure test. Rising to the challenge, Daria joined a group of intellectuals at Ukraine World, an organization dedicated to communicating the situation in Ukraine to international audiences. In collaboration with her colleagues, Ms. Synhaievska plays a crucial role in keeping global attention focused on Ukraine. Her impeccable English enables her to provide firsthand, stoic accounts of the atrocities committed by russian forces. True to the resilient spirit of Ukrainians, Daria remains capable of discussing the aggressor’s imperial ambitions with a calm and thorough analysis, even while seeking refuge from his bombs. With thought leaders like Ms. Synhaievska, I am confident that Ukraine's future is in capable hands.”

- Olga Shmaidenko, Founder of WOW Woman

Political Science Analyst, Journalist, Scholar, Kyiv, Ukraine

3. What did you study and what is your profession? How did you start reporting?

My major is Political Science, the field close to my heart. Reporting at UkraineWorld (a multilingual media platform explaining Ukraine, its politics, culture, history, and struggle, to the international audiences) was a logical continuation of my aspiration to showcase the multifaceted nature of Ukraine, a country that had been partly silenced before. I joined the UkraineWorld team as an analyst in August 2022, just after earning my B.A. and at the height of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. My work focuses on researching, discovering, and rediscovering Ukraine and its political traditions of the past, discussing the present, and imagining our future for all who are interested.

4. What was your typical day like before the war and how has your role changed since the invasion of Ukraine?

We all know that Russia’s war in Ukraine started back in 2014. However, the full-scale invasion of course was a calamity on an entirely different scale. It is worth noting that during Ukrainian Parliamentary elections in 2019, the second largest political party voted into the Parliament was a pro-Russian Opposition platform called “For Life” - this phenomenon is certainly unimaginable now. So, the perception has changed. My regular day, before the full-scale invasion, involved carrying out scientific work and my research.

The once-familiar routines and activities were disrupted by the chaos. The day now started with scanning the headlines. The first few weeks I could hardly sleep as I needed updates every few minutes. I remember vividly joining the so-called «IT Army» to resist the Russians. Literally all the devices were switched to the active mode of virtual resisting. If before the war I occasionally donated to the social issues, such as children welfare, heavy illnesses, animal care, then after Russia’s aggression constant donations to Ukrainian Army became a rule of thumb. The practice of donation helps all Ukrainians to survive under Russia’s barrages of non-stop bombing. I may not know how each tense night will end, but at least I know that I donated. When the morning comes, and I’m alive, I can write a new piece about Ukraine.

Typically bustling-with-life streets became eerily quiet, punctuated by the sounds of sirens and distant explosions. Only 10 minutes from my home in Kyiv, Russian subversive and reconnaissance unit shot a car with a family, then Russia blasted Kyiv’s TV station, killing passers-by.

5. What would you say are your strengths and superpowers?

I would say resilience, empathy, and determination. Russia traditionally brings destruction, violence, and necro imperialism wherever it goes. Existing in such a context, being an alive archive for war crimes, witnessing what Hannah Arendt wrote as the banality of evil, understanding that there are no «innocent Russians» - all these demand strength. I’m determined to keep up with the news and draw on inner resilience to navigate the challenges of this war with dignity.

Despite the hardships, Ukrainians managed to preserve compassion and empathy - another one of our superpowers. We offer a helping hand to those in need, whether it's offering assistance to displaced persons, providing medical care to the injured, or simply offering a listening ear to those struggling with trauma.

I guess this war teaches us to remain determined in the face of the aggressor and always remember who we are, rethink who we were, and rediscover our future.

6. What are some concrete actions (big or small) you’ve done and continue doing to help Ukraine and Ukrainian people?

I believe the strong rear support that each of us civilians creates for the Ukrainian Army rests on these three pillars: donations, intellectual subjectivity, and awareness raising. We compose the rear for our defenders, and it’s our rēs pūblica (common affair) to repel the aggressor. This varies from supporting our Army to supporting our civilians who suffered different kinds of loss caused by the war.

The same goes with placing a strong footing on intellectual subjectivity to be able to have the intellectual courage to deconstruct the «Russian World» - a hybrid ideology built on Russia’s imperial ruins and borders of 1914. Nevertheless, the response to such crippled epistemology should not be reduced to the modus operandi of Shevchenko's myth of the Ukraine. Taking this challenge means seeing Ukraine’s power in civic identity, pluralism of thoughts, and humanism.

That leads us to awareness-raising about Ukraine’s internationally-recognized borders of 1991, both domestically and abroad. The war in Ukraine makes us rethink Max Weber's Ethic of Responsibility and take responsibility for our actions. After all, as Horace writes in his Epistles: «It is your concern when your neighbor's wall is on fire.»

7. What are things you do just for you? Is it possible to stay sane in a war situation? What are some things that help you to not lose yourself?

To be honest, my work and the courageous nation I belong to. People who continue the underground struggle in the temporarily occupied territories. A 98-year-old Lidiya Stepanivna, who left the occupied part of Ocheretyne village on foot, walking 10kms of frontline under enemy’s fire, in order to reach Ukrainian-controlled territory. Our Defenders.

All these stories add up to a mosaic of the strength of spirit and inspire greatly. Ultimately, it’s not about having no vulnerabilities as a nation, but waking up and converting vulnerabilities into strengths.

Finally, I enjoy taking a simple walk to relieve the layered overwhelming thoughts.

9. What do you want the world to know about Ukrainians at this moment in time? About Ukrainian women?

Ukraine is bringing metaphysics (what we are and what our purpose is) back in Europe. It makes the world re-evaluate the value of dignity before the face of the aggressor, defining measures of civilization and barbarism. Ukraine’s fight is indeed Kantian in nature (an internal code of conduct that applies universally, derived by reason itself). It tries to reestablish publicity. Publicity is not just about talking, but about the possibility of argumentation. Arguments about why we need determination and dignity, not appeasement.

Ukraine's defensive war is also about a certain defeat of Marxism, according to which culture is just a superstructure or a reflection of economic relations. The world once tried to “restrain” Russia through joint trade (assuming it will become a good actor through partnership), which “should” have led to peace. Instead collaboration with Russia got us all a culture of unpunished evil. At the end, the economic way to carve out common values doesn’t work unless the aggressor has already been proportionately punished, realised and repented for its crimes.

Ukrainian women. The womanly face of this war demonstrates not only emancipation, but also highlights stark differences between Ukraine and Russia. In Ukraine, military positions held by servicewomen are becoming common place. This is because societal democratization leads to greater inclusivity. Women in the Russian Armed Forces on the other hand, usually occupy “traditionally female positions”, like cooks and nurses. The cruelty of Russian society is reflected in the fact that Russian women are among those who torture and kill Ukrainian prisoners of war.

10. Is it difficult to live in Ukraine and try to reach a foreign audience? What is the most difficult aspect? And the most positive?

This (being tuned into all that is happening inside Ukraine) gives me the power and privilege to bear witness; to be an engaged observer, eyes and ears for those Ukrainians and foreigners who themselves are not in the hot spots on the map.

Perhaps the most challenging thing to witness has been the distortion of concepts presented by political forces. This distortion stems from the lack of awareness of the regime's bloody nature; from the recognition of Nazism but the forgetting of Bolshevism. We often hear about the desire for a strong hand, but for some reason we forget about the price of such a hand. For some reason, these sympathisers are often found in liberal democratic regimes where there is freedom of speech, thought, and religion. However, there are democratic tools for order, such as a system of checks and balances, free and equal elections.

The positive aspects I notice are perception shifts. Perhaps gradual; not as fast as I would like to see. But they are in place, starting to take shape. We can’t deny that the most severe sanctions against Russia's military-industrial complex were introduced in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. They highlighted that any cooperation in this matter is sanctionable, and the export of military and space-class chips was banned. However, the true understanding of what Russia really is and what it is capable of, came after February 24, 2022.

13. How do you see dynamics changing inside the country, with attitudes toward the future?

I was a coauthor of UNDP’s report on youth, where if we compare 2021 and 2023 years we see a significant increase in the sense of civic duty (from 5.6 to 6.8 out of 10), especially the sense of civic responsibility (from 5.5 to 6.9) among young people, of whom 59% believe that what happens to Ukraine concerns them (with a 24% increase compared to 2021). Civic optimism has also increased: 55% of young people believe that the next generation will live better, compared to 41% of respondents in 2021. Consequently, the dynamic towards identifying oneself with the State and seeing one’s future in Ukraine speak volumes.

From my point of view, we must remain strong. The Fall of Icarus moves from Ovid's Metamorphoses to Bruegel's landscapes, which proclaim a new world. It is about creating a world where there is a distinct response and action aimed at never letting the aggressor perform through the means of justice order.

14. In your opinion, how do russians differ from Ukrainians? Do you want justice for russians? Do you think it is possible and what would you like to see happen?

It all stems from differences in political culture. In Ukraine, there is a great emphasis on individuality. We can trace it back to the Ukrainian Cossacks’ times and their prioritization of self-reliance. That’s why the concept of the Cossack Sich was so dangerous for the Muscovites and they attempted to eradicate it.

Russia, on the other hand, promotes Tsaribozhye (a term that merges the ideas of the God and the tsar, the ruler on earth), which means that the tsar is anointed by God and serves as God’s continuation on earth. Accordingly, all those who oppose the tsar are to be dealt with as traitors of highest order and eliminated. The three pillars of the Russian world are: the Russian language, Historical Memory, and the Orthodox religion. They constitute the framework and the blueprint for the modern Russian ‘end of ideology’. These pillars serve the basis to legitimize all political decisions in Russia. Historical memory is a fundamental factor of Russia’s goal in preserving the fragments of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. Together the pillars form Russia’s national idea of ‘Orthodoxy. Autocracy. Nationality’, also known as Official Nationalism, the dominant Imperial ideological doctrine of Russian Emperor Nicholas I. The doctrine seeks Imperial unity under Orthodox Christianity and the absolute authority of Tsar the Emperor, while suppressing and eliminating ideas deemed destructive to that unity.

Achieving justice is important for securing our, Ukraine and the world’s, common future. History sets the context for the present, “What’s past is prologue”; therefore Putin's threats on partitioning Poland or the Baltic states must be taken seriously. We must take action and stand up against Russia’s imperial appetites.

I don't see any remorse in the Russians. And without that, without taking responsibility for propping up Putin's regime, it will be hard to achieve true justice. There is no real opposition in Russia, political nor thought. When we study the speeches of several “opposition” parties, we realize that for them, it is not a matter of not committing the war crimes against other nations, but how to best commit them. Hannah Arendt put it explicitly some time ago: far-right and far-left regimes can be equated, as they are closer to each other than either is to the political center. A nation where a monopolistic party is in charge of all the levers of state results in a transformation of the peoplehood into faceless masses that can be atomized and controlled. This is what we see in ‘modern’ Russia.