People gather to call out U.S. President Donald Trump for betraying Ukraine outside the U.S. embassy in Kyiv on March 8.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Olena Sachenko usually spends International Women’s Day attending a march in support of women’s rights. But on Saturday she put on a mask of the Statue of Liberty, wrapped herself in a Ukrainian flag and joined a protest outside the U.S. embassy in Kyiv.
The small but boisterous group came to voice their anger at U.S. President Donald Trump for suspending military aid to Ukraine and limiting access to satellite imagery. Many demonstrators carried signs that played on Mr. Trump’s repeated comments that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “does not have the cards” to negotiate a ceasefire from a position of strength. “When war is a game, human lives become Trump cards,” read one sign. “It’s not poker. It’s our lives,” read another.
“Today is the day of women’s rights,” said Ms. Sachenko as she stood in front of a row of signs that depicted Mr. Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Russian President Vladimir Putin as playing cards. “So what can be more interesting than to dress in these clothes?”
Olena Sachenko, draped in a Ukrainian flag, wears a Statue of Liberty mask at a protest near the U.S. embassy in Kyiv.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Ms. Sachenko, who works as a psychologist in a Kyiv area hospital, never dreamed she would be standing outside the U.S. embassy to call out an American President for betraying Ukraine. “It’s very strange,” she said.
There are already fears here that the suspension of U.S. aid is having an impact on the battlefield and emboldening the Russian army. At least 20 people were killed and dozens injured Friday night during Russian bombing raids in Donetsk, Kharkiv and other parts of the country, according to Ukrainian officials. There have also been reports that the Ukrainian army is losing ground in Kursk, a small sliver of Russia the military took last year but has struggled to hold.
On Friday, Mr. Trump acknowledged that Russia was “bombing the hell out of Ukraine” and that Mr. Putin was “doing what anybody else would do.” He also said he was finding it more difficult to deal with Ukraine than with Russia in working toward a peace deal. “And they don’t have the cards,” he added referring to Ukraine.
Mr. Zelensky called for stiffer economic sanctions against Russia in the wake of Friday’s attacks and he noted that the Red Army has carried out more than 260 air raids since Mr. Trump restricted military support.
The Ukrainian President is traveling to Saudi Arabia on Monday for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and to meet U.S. officials the next day. “Ukraine has been seeking peace from the very first second of this war. Realistic proposals are on the table. The key is to move quickly and effectively,” he wrote on X on Saturday.
Protesters in Kyiv gathered to voice their anger at U.S. President Donald Trump for suspending military aid to Ukraine and limiting access to satellite imagery.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Several European leaders reacted with outrage to Friday’s strikes, and some offered veiled criticism of Mr. Trump.
“This is what happens when someone appeases barbarians. More bombs, more aggression, more victims. Another tragic night in Ukraine,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X.
“Once again, Putin shows he has no interest in peace,” said Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s foreign policy chief.
Outside the U.S. embassy in Kyiv, Valeria Tkachenko said International Women’s Day was an ideal occasion to protest Mr. Trump’s actions.
March 8th “is about human rights after all, and I’m here because I’m protecting human rights, democracy and so on. So basically, it matches,” Ms. Tkachenko said as she held up a sign that read: “So you’re gonna just sit back and watch?”
She too feels betrayed by the U.S. and worries that Mr. Trump is trying to force Ukraine into accepting a peace agreement that will only empower Mr. Putin and lead to a future Russian invasion. “I do wish America would wake up and not make the terrible mistakes that they are on a path to.”
Many protestors carried signs that played on Mr. Trump’s repeated comments that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky 'does not have the cards' to negotiate a ceasefire from a position of strength.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Anna Kubareva wears an American flag she bought on a previous trip to the U.S. at a protest outside the U.S. embassy in Kyiv.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Anna Kubareva came to the protest draped in an American flag that she bought on a trip to Washington nearly ten years ago. She’s originally from Mariupol, which is under Russian occupation, and she’s furious that Mr. Trump appears willing to let Mr. Putin keep the territory Russia has captured.
“Right now, there is still some slight hope that perhaps we’ll be able to push back the Russians and bring back those territories, and I will have my home back. But with this new rhetoric from the Trump administration, I don’t think that’s possible,” she said.
David Plaster, a former U.S. army medic who came to the country 13 years ago to fight alongside the Ukrainian army in 2014, joined the protest in Kyiv to express his anger at Mr. Trump's decision to suspend military assistance for Ukraine.Olga Ivashchenko/The Globe and Mail
Among those who addressed the small crowd was David Plaster, an American from Springfield, Missouri. He’s a former U.S. army medic who came to the country 13 years ago to fight alongside the Ukrainians in 2014.
“I’m ashamed of the actions of the President,” he said after making his remarks to the rally. Mr. Trump’s decision to suspend military assistance was “shocking. It was surprising. It was disgusting, all at the same time.”
He’s a Republican but he didn’t vote for Mr. Trump in 2016 or 2024. Instead, he wrote in the name of someone who also hails from Springfield: “I voted for Homer Simpson.”