Residents Of Kyiv And Moscow Prepare Very Differently For Two Christmases And One New Year. 21 Images Tell Part Of The Story. For One- Relief. For The Other- Trepidation. For 2023?
Two Cities Prepare Very Differently For Two Christmases And One New Year.
For One- Relief And Preparedness.
For The Other- Trepidation Towards Unknown.
One Has Survived. One Begins To Contemplate Survival.
They Share- Too Many Burials.
During the next fourteen days, citizens of Ukraine and the Russian Federation will each mark three festive events- Christian (Gregorian/Julian/Western) Christmas on 25 December 2022, New Year’s Day on 1 January 2023, and Orthodox Christian Christmas on 7 January 2023. They are doing so in markedly different ways.
In Kyiv, capital of Ukraine, festivities are mostly absent illumination with the federal government and city administrations throughout Ukraine requested funding from the private sector, who have readily embraced the opportunity. Indoors, the holiday spirit endures, perhaps better said, perseveres. The government of Ukraine does not want to “cancel” the holidays, but does want and does need to reinforce that Ukraine is a country at war, a country that was attacked- and unnecessary illumination, while providing on-the-ground joy, may also provide a target for a drone or missile. This is a message of particular importance to deliver outside of Ukraine- to those governments (taxpayers), individuals, and organizations that are or have yet to provide direct or indirect assistance to and for Ukraine.
In Moscow, capital of the Russian Federation, festivities are all about illumination and consistency. The city government did seek input from residents who suggested less taxpayer spending. Yet, what was in 2021 is again in 2022- and more. The GUM luxury department store is wrapped in red ribbon- though inside its cavernous floors of high-end brands missing are customers expected the days before a holiday. The airline Aeroflot sponsors a Christmas tree. At a BOSCO indoor shopping venue, two young women, wearing Team Bosco headwear, illustrate Christmas cards and then add wording- handwritten in calligraphy. The Kremlin is the scene for ice skating and kiosks selling food. Burger King remains operational at Vnukovo International Airport (VKO).
The Volodymyr Zelensky Administration in Kyiv wants to remind citizens and those outside of Ukraine that 2022 is not normal. The Vladimir Putin Administration in Moscow wants to remind citizens and those outside the Russian Federation that 2022 is pretty much normal.
Each government shares one projected trait- they are defiant toward one another and toward those who seek to thwart them.
For residents in each city as December 2022 edges nearer to January 2023, the weather encourages directness. It’s cold. It’s damp. It’s snowing. It’s raining. It’s overcast. It’s unpleasant.
In Kyiv, residents on the street sometimes smile, acknowledge one another. In Moscow, residents on the street are stoic; they walk with purpose. In both cities, the young- teenagers and those entering adulthood, do smile, do take selfies, do pose, do dress-to-impress.
In Kyiv, residents are relieved they have survived since 24 February 2022, the morning of which in Kharkiv, the second-largest city in Ukraine, the armed forces of the Russian Federation invaded and invaded further into the territory of Ukraine.
Residents of Kyiv are prepared for 2023 and who and what could bring to their homes, businesses, playgrounds, houses of worship, hospitals, schools, and train and railway stations. For many, thoughts are more akin to “what else can they do to us?”
Residents of Moscow pain has thus far been limited to economic as there is no outward discernable fear of a military attack by the armed forces of Ukraine upon Moscow or its surrounding areas, although there have been attacks in areas near to the border with Ukraine and in areas near the Crimean Peninsula. The Rouble currency is unstable, food prices are rising, employment opportunities declining, citizens are departing, travel is limited (due to sanctions), financial transactions are limited (due to sanctions), and well-known brands from outside of the Russian Federation have ceased to be offered or remain offered but at much higher prices as they are no longer sourced directly. Familiar brands are replaced with new names from China, India, Turkiye and beyond. For many residents of Moscow, their thoughts are “what don’t we know?” and “what is coming?”
War is not and should not be considered an anecdote or desirable remedy. Ukraine and the Russian Federation will hopefully be better countries because of the war. Each will have opportunities to discard, revise, and hold accountable components of their respective commercial, economic, military, and political infrastructures and how they are each accountable to voters, taxpayers, and to those outside of their borders. Thinking optimistically, their trajectories have been interrupted- each can be a better society both inward and outward.
Ukraine and the Russian Federation are countries and nations. They each have territorial boundaries, political boundaries, and cultural boundaries. They each have dynamic histories- glorious and painful, including toward one another.
2023 will see a meeting between President Zelensky and President Putin. The prelude could include interactions (public or private) by the respective ministers of foreign affairs and ministers of defense. There will be a process- the first meeting might be a discussion, the second meeting might be a negotiation.
Joseph Biden, President of the United States, shared again this week when discussing the process to craft the 2022-2023 budget for the United States that “Neither side got everything it wanted in this agreement – that’s what happens in a negotiation.” Important to clarify that sometimes a negotiation can result in each party obtaining what they desire- because sometimes what is desired may change as the result of negotiation. The result does not need to be that one party wins and one party loses. And, yes, both parties can win. Both parties can lose too.
Would be beneficial for the government of Ukraine and government of the Russian Federation to limit public discussions of preconditions that the other must agree to prior to negotiations. If they refrain from publicly framing-in-advance their upper and lower parameters, then each head of state might find common, or not uncommon ground for a temporary, gradual, and permanent cessation of what has thus far been measured by death, injury, destruction, third party economic pain, and an enormous misplacement of financial resources.
President Zelensky and President Putin should focus intently upon lowering their respective upper ranges of acceptable death, injury, destruction, and use of financial resources in pursuing their respective goals. Generations of Ukrainians and Russians depend upon it- for their futures.