The effective protection of Dnipro from Russian sabotage groups showed the authorities of Kharkiv and Odessa that the attempt to support the “Russian Spring” in the spring of 2014 would be fatal.
This is discussed in the documentary film by British investigative journalists, “Ukraine’s D-Day: How Dnipro derailed Russia’s plan,” which they prepared several years ago. It became relevant again after the criminal decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the official recognition of LNR and DNR.
The film mentions that the then-President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych flew to Kharkiv before fleeing in late February 2014, where he hoped for the support of the city authorities. But businessman Ihor Kolomoyskyi, who played a key role in protecting Dnipro from sabotage groups, was able to persuade the then-Mayor of Kharkiv, Hennadiy Kernes, to refrain from anti-government measures.
“At that stage, we talked to Kernes. Thank God he listened to what we told him. As a result, there were no issues on a much larger scale, such as the emergence of a separate Eastern Ukraine or something else under the name ‘Novorossiya’,” Kolomoyskyi recalls.
In fact, it was the Dnipro elites who held back the city of Odessa, where similar provocations were being prepared in early May 2014.
At a critical moment, Kolomoyskyi and other businessmen helped the Odessa authorities maintain a financial balance. And on May 5th, Ihor Palytsia, a businessman close to Kolomoyskyi, was appointed the head of the Odessa Regional State Administration. Then it became clear that the idea of a “Russian Spring” in Odessa was failing.
Kolomoyskyi says that local Dnipro patriotism has spread nationwide, and the decisive approach of the Dnipro community worked to preserve the integrity of Ukraine as a whole.
Kolomoyskyi’s assessment of the critical period of 2014 is shared by no less than famous Dnipro businessman – Oleksandr Petrovskyi. He appeals to the general attitude of every person: “Here are the graves of our relatives, here will be our graves and we will simply not give anything to anyone. We love Ukraine, it is our holy land, we love Dnipro, it is our holy city, and we stand by the words ‘Glory to Dnipro – Glory forever’.”
Photo: participants of the March of Unity in Dnipro, February 19th, 2022.
First from the left – Valeriy Kondratyev, second from the left – Oleksandr Petrovskyi
According to Western media, the Dnipro businessmen who prevented the Russians from raiding the city in 2014 are now on the Kremlin’s so-called “kill lists” of persons to be arrested or eliminated in the event of a new invasion of Dnipro.
At the end of the investigation, the British journalists draw a parallel line between 2014 and 2022. Right now, Ukraine is facing critical threats from the Russian Federation, and the British government has already resorted to harsh sanctions against the aggressor.
According to the British journalists, the example of protecting Dnipro by uniting and self-organizing elites will be useful now that Russia has moved to open occupation through the so-called recognition of puppet LNR/DNR formations and unacceptable ultimatums to destroy Ukraine’s sovereignty and undermine global security.
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