OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Those with close ties to Ukraine are reacting following an attack on the country by Russian forces.
Orest Lechnowsky runs a Facebook page for Ukrainians in Omaha. He says the images from the Russian attack haven’t been seen since World War II.
“That’s early 20th century in most people’s minds,” he said.
Despite the buildup, Lechnowsky said the attack came as a shock to many.
“I think everybody had it in the back of their mind that this could go this way,” he said. “I don’t know how many people thought that would be the most likely scenario.”
Lechnowsky, whose father immigrated from Ukraine to Omaha in the late 1940s, said he has a deep connection to the country.
Professor Terry Clark, a political scientist at Creighton University, said Ukrainian culture and pride mostly applies to the western half of the country.
“This is where Ukrainian is the language and there’s a cultural and ethnic identity with being Ukrainian,” Clark said. “The eastern half of the country is not that way at all but is, in fact, Russian and identifies as such.”
Clark said that concern is growing about the crisis in Ukraine, not only because of what’s happening there, but the ripple effects it will likely have at home.
“In the United States we’re going to see higher gas prices in the short term,” he said. “The markets are already reacting, so all of our 401k's for the middle class are gonna be hit pretty hard.”
Lechnowsky disagrees that the nation is divided, saying the country’s response is united and strong.
“Most of the news I’m hearing out of Ukraine is mostly positive, given the circumstances,” he said. “I think the Ukrainian armed forces have acquitted themselves better than what was expected of them.”
Lechnowsky hopes the rest of the world takes a similar approach when it comes to stopping Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin.
“I hope the response is strong, united and clear that this sort of thing is not the way to conduct international business,” Lechnowsky said.
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