As the world looks on with trepidation, Russia's invasion of Ukraine — and Ukraine's resistance to Russian forces — continues.
In the early days of the conflict, we've seen numerous examples of heroism on the part of Ukrainian citizens as they fight to maintain control of their country. And it's increasingly clear that Ukrainians from all walks of life are determined to defend their homeland.
Russian forces launched a coordinated invasion of Ukraine, their neighbor to the west. It's the largest invasion seen in Europe since the Second World War.
Russia has one of the largest militaries in the world, so it would seem to be a David versus Goliath fight. But Ukrainians are protective of their independence and it seems like everyone, old and young, is willing to step up to fight the Russian invaders.
Kira Rudik may not be a household name in the West, but she's well known in Ukraine. As the former CEO of the company that developed Ring doorbell cams, Rudik is immensely wealthy — she now serves as a member of Ukraine's parliament. As this tweet points out, she has the means to escape the conflict, but has chosen to keep fighting.
On Rudik's Twitter account, @kiraincongress, she's catalogued news, observations, and general information about the crisis. She also shared this pic, showing that she's traded legal documents for assault rifles.
CNN journalist Christian Streib shared this image of Ukrainian couple Yaryna and Sviatoslav tying in the knot in a traditional ceremony. They moved their wedding date up from May after Russia invaded their country.
"Today, Yaryna, 21, posted this picture on her Facebook page, proudly displaying the AK-47 assault rifles, received from the government, so she and her husband Sviatoslav, 24, can join the resistance and defend their country," wrote Streib of this photo.
Model Anastasia Lenna usually shares glamorous photos like this on her social media channels. But after the invasion, Lenna turned to activism on social media, encouraging Ukrainians to dismantle road signs to make things difficult for invading forces.
Lenna also shared this photo, along with the hashtags #standwithukraine and #handsoffukraine. Needless to say, the image of Miss Ukraine fighting for Ukraine has caused a stir online.
Whether the crisis turns into a long, drawn-out conflict or gets resolved quickly remains to be seen. But based off of what we've seen from the Ukrainian people, it's clear that they're not going to go down without a fight.
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