A group of Ukrainian women are voluntarily being trained in the use of weapons so that they can defend themselves in the event of a Russian invasion. Svetlina Putlina, who runs a religious organization for Muslim women in Kharkiv, also spent the weekend training.
The 50-year-old plans to stay in the city with elderly family members to fight the invasion.
"The children will be sent to a country that we think is at least relatively peaceful, while our family members will stay in the city to protect the country," declared Svetlina Putlina, head of the Muslim women's organization in Krakhiv.
Viktoria Balesina, 55 years old, also participates in these training sessions. Her native language is Russian, but since the beginning of Russian tensions with Ukraine, she tries to speak Ukrainian.
Kharkiv is Ukraine's second most populous city, just 40 kilometers from the border with Russia. Some fear that if Russia attacks, Kharkiv could be one of the first targets. Another group of women who have already undergone military training are joining the volunteers who make military nets to send to the front line.
Russia's massing of around 100 troops near the border with Ukraine has brought increasingly strong warnings from the West that Moscow intends to invade. Russia is seeking assurances that NATO will not allow Ukraine to join the alliance and stop deploying weapons to the North Atlantic military near Russian borders.
(BalkanWeb)
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