It’s the result of a combined effort by thousands of people. They rally on the streets, write letters to elected officials, meet in-person with politicians, spread the word about Ukraine with their friends and colleagues, and also donate to the Ukrainian army, said Anton Bogdanovych, a member of the board of the Ukrainian Council of New South Wales in Australia, in an interview with the magazine Ukrayinsky Tyzhden (Ukrainian Weekly).
Despite the fact that the Ukrainian community in Australia numbers around 50,000, they have learned to interact effectively and put aside their own interests for the sake of the common cause.
“This approach has allowed us to achieve much greater results compared to communities in countries with millions of Ukrainians,” Bogdanovych said.
Over the past three years, the Ukrainian community has pushed Australian companies to fully withdraw from the Russian market, contributed to the isolation of Russia, and supported military aid to Ukraine. They have also actively influenced international decisions and coordinated actions with other countries.
One of the main arguments Ukrainians use when addressing the Australian government is security.
“Ukraine will not survive, and China will receive the signal that violations of international law are possible. This could trigger the start of World War III, and Australia, as a country without nuclear weapons and with a limited military, would be vulnerable,” Bogdanovych said.
It is also important to highlight the practical threats: Australia is not part of NATO, its military is small, and reliance on alliances such as AUKUS is insufficient. In the event of a global conflict, Australia could become the next target.
According to Bogdanovych, the key difference between Ukrainians and Russians is that “we understand victory comes from small actions and daily decisions made by each of us.”
Latest news
#DefeatRussia
